Drinking-water quality and sanitary conditions in small piped drinking water supply systems in rural areas in Serbia: Comparative analysis between Broad areas

Provision of water supply service, through small-scale water supply systems (SSWS), is faced with many challenges in the entire pan-European region. This was the first comprenhensive national study that assessed drinking water quality and sanitary conditions in Serbia. This national survey was undertaken in rural areas of the Republic of Serbia in 2016 and on the basis of the WHO rapid assessment methodology. For the purpose of this study, three Broad Areas (BA) covering 26 districts were created, based on geographical and socio-economic characteristics of the districts: Vojvodina with 7 districts as BA1, West Serbia, Šumadija and Belgrade with 9 districts as BA2 and South and East Serbia and Kosovska Mitrovica with 10 districts as BA3. A total of 1168 piped water supply systems were inspected, sampled and analysed for selected microbiological and physical-chemical parameters. This study summarized the differences in compliance rate for microbiological and each physical-chemical parameter and sanitary scores between Broad Areas. This comparative analysis of small piped drinking water supply systems showed notable, significant differences in drinking water quality and identified sanitary risks between the selected areas.