THE UNIVERSITY OF ZAMBIA

SCHOOL OF NURSING SCIENCES

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY HEALTH

LUSAKA WATER AND SEWERAGE COMPANY REPORT

COURSE: PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE

COURSE CODE: 4144

LECTURER: MRS. MUTEMWA

DUE DATE: 30TH JULY, 2023.

ACTIVITY: KAFUE SITE VISIT, 2023.

 GROUP MEMBERS

NAME COMPUTER No NAME COMPUTER No

1. YETAMBUYU LIBOMA 21104748 30. HAPPY SILONDWA 21106384

2. DALITSO MALUNDU 21105817 31. FAITH NANYANGWE 21104575
3. MAKALA HABEENZU 21105910 32. HAMUNYARE KWARAMBA 21104271
4. RHODA MALISOPO 21104737 33. ABIGAIL CHAKOTA 21106294
5. SUSAN K PHIRI 21104268 34. SYLVIA SAMBOKO 21106121
6. BELINDA .M. ZIMBA 21106405 35. ANNIE .K. CHISALA 21105819
7. MUBANGA BWALYA 21105827 36. EDINAH .C. SAKALA 21105537
8. KAMBAILA LYDIA 21105539 37. CAROLINE MPELO 21105186
9. SHIMALIMBIKA BERTHA 21105125 38. VIVIAN SAKALA 21106118
10. HILWAAMBWE CHIINZA 21106236 39. JOHN MWILA 21104133
11. MARY MUKONDA 17058793 40. CECILIA CHIONE 21105228
12. GINESS MWEENE 21105112 41. ANNIE KAOMA 21106023
13. HABUWELE CHRISPIN 21105135 42. OSWARD NSHIMBA 21104991
14. BEAUTY NDHLOVU 21105859 43. ISABEL MSHANGA 21105161
15. THANDIWE BANDA 21106401 44. MWAKA SIMBEYE 21105108
16. MUTINTA SIMAUBI 21105313 45. TABO SANDRA KATWIZI 18149075
17. CONSTANCE MWABA 21106312 46. MAJORIE MUNENE 13214543
18. ELIZABETH PHIRI 21105538 47. LIKANDO MWANAMBUYU
19. FAITH MTONGA 21105106 21105105
20. TAMARA BANDA 21105738 48. MARY FUNSANI 21105352
21. MWAKA HAMUMBA 22105594 49. CAROL GOTO 21105871
22. MAGGIE MATE 21106114 50. FLORENCE SHULA 21106343
23. NAYAME .M. NAKAMBA 21105121 51. SHARON MPHANDE 21104741
24. ANGELLA .L. MABUNDE 21106228 52. CHOLA MUSENGE 20020012
25. SYLVIA SAMBOKO 21106121 53. ANNIE PHIRI 21105342
26. CLARA SOLOCHI 21104574 54. MWEWA CHANSA 20019264
27. YVONNE PHIRI 21105307 55. CHISANGA CHISHIMBA 21104573
28. JOE SITWALA KAPAU 21106397 56. GIVEN MUWANDIA 21104826
29. CLIFF MWEEMBA 21104143

1
 TABLE OF CONTENT

Contents
ABREVIATIONS/ACRONYM......................................................................................................................................2

BACKGROUND.............................................................................................................................................................3

INTRODUCTION TO WATER PURIFICATON..........................................................................................................4

OBJECTIVES OF TOURING LUSAKA WATER AND SEWERAGE COMPANY....................................................5

GENERAL OBJECTIVE............................................................................................................................................5

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES.......................................................................................................................................5

WATER PRODUCTION AND TRANSMISSION PROCESS AT LUSAKA WATER AND SEWERAGE

COMPANY..................................................................................................................................................................... 6

Course Screens............................................................................................................................................................6

1. TREATMENT STAGE...........................................................................................................................................6

2. TRANSMISSION.......................................................................................................................................................7

MEASURES EMPLOYED TO ENSURE SAFETY OF PRODUCT.............................................................................7

MEASURES EMPOLYED TO ENSURE SAFETY OF EMPLOYEES AND THE ENVIROMENTMENT................7

MEASURES EMPLOYED TO ENSURE SAFETY OF PRODUCTS TO CONSUMERS............................................8

RECOMMENDATIONS................................................................................................................................................8

CONCLUSION...............................................................................................................................................................8

REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................................................10
ABREVIATIONS/ACRONYM

UNESCO……………….. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

NWASCO...................... National Water Supply Sanitation Council

ZESCO ………………… Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation

LTD…………………….. Limited Company

WASH …………………..Water Sanitation and Hygiene

WHO ……………………. World Health Organization

UNICEF………………… United Nations Children’s Fund

MDG….…………………. Millennium Development Goals

SDGPDF………………… Portable Document Format

BACKGROUND
Historical evidence suggests that water treatment was recognized and practiced by ancient civilizations and
their basic treatment was water purification by boiling and filtration sighted by Edward Frankland. He was
born in 1825 Church town, Lancashire England and died in 1899. He was an English chemist who was one
of the first investigators in the field of structural chemistry.
Water purification is a process by which undesired chemical compounds, organic and inorganic materials,
and biological contaminants are removed from water. That process also includes distillation (the conversion
of a liquid into vapour to condense it back to liquid form) and deionization (ion removal through the
extraction of dissolved salts). One major purpose of water purification is to provide clean drinking water.
Water purification also meets the needs of medical, pharmacological, chemical, and industrial applications
for clean and potable water. The purification procedure reduces the concentration of contaminants such as
suspended particles, parasites, bacteria, algae, viruses, and fungi. Water purification takes place on scales
from the large
INTRODUCTION TO WATER PURIFICATON

The Lusaka Water and Sewerage Company comprises two units .The first is a Water Production and
Transmission Unit (Kaseba Plant located in Kafue District about 50 kilometres from Lusaka.) and the
second Chawama Sewerage Management located in Kafue. Kafue Water Production and Transmission
Kaseba Plant is the main source of water supply to Kafue town. The plant was constructed in 1968 by the
Japanese company and was named after the person who discovered the Water Spring. The plant became
operational in 1972 and it draws it’s water from the Kafue River. Kafue river is 980.60m above sea level.

The visit was a success and important to Community Health Nursing because safe water is immensely a
major determinant of health because of its absolute significant use. It is therefore important to comprehend
how water is treated and stored and distributed before it reaches the consumers in order to broaden the
knowledge to public and in Public health to hence the prevention of waterbone diseases.
OBJECTIVES OF TOURING LUSAKA WATER AND SEWERAGE COMPANY

GENERAL OBJECTIVE
To acquire knowledge and skills on how water purification is done in Zambia

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
1. To observe how Industrial water is made safe for human consumption
2. To understand how contaminated water is made safe before it is released into the environment.
3. To acquire knowledge and skills on how water purification is done.
 WATER PRODUCTION AND TRANSMISSION PROCESS AT LUSAKA WATER AND
SEWERAGE COMPANY
SOURCE (RIVER INTAKE)
The water is pumped from Kafue River using an underground pump through a sieve to the three turbine
pumps in the pump house. Besides the pump house, there is a pressure vessel that holds water to prevent
backflow in case of power failure. Then the water is pumped into the bigger pipe which takes it to the
treatment plant.

1. PRE-TREATMENT STAGE

Course Screens
This is the first step where pretreatment method is done using coarse screens to remove large particles from
water to prevent clogging of pipes or channels to the treatment plant. This takes place right at the pump
house which is located by the edge of Kafue River. Raw water storage settles colloidal particles.

2. TREATMENT STAGE
This stage involves the following

(a)Flocculation
Is the treatment process in which Sudfloc, a coagulant, is added to the water to form a precipitate? The
coagulant helps to collect small suspended particles in water into large clamps that will settle easily at the
bottom of the tank. The coagulated particles are removed by flashing every morning.
(b)Sedimentation
Is a water treatment process in which particles are allowed to settle at the bottom of the sedimentation tank?
The precipitates formed by the chemical reaction continue to attract turbid material so that bacteria can be
isolated. As the bacteria continue to be attracted it grows and settles in the sediments in a place called ponds.
(c) Filtration
It is done by rapid gravity sand filters which remove suspended solids which play an important role in both
the naturally occurring purification of ground water and the artificial purification of water in treatment
plants. Filtration takes place naturally as water moves through three layers which consisting of stones,
course sand and fine sand. This natural process, called percolation removes most suspended material from
ground water to pass through layers of filter media thereby preventing the suspensions from interfering with
later treatment processes. Effective filtration helps to remove runoff suspended particles thereby reducing
turbidity and exposing microbes for disinfection. The suspended material includes soil, oxidized metals and
micro-organisms and most of these microorganisms are extremely resistant to chlorination or other
disinfection.

(d) Disinfection
At this stage gas Chlorine is added to get rid of bacteria and it is the most commonly used chemical in water
disinfection. The amount of chlorine added per day is 84 kg which is 3500g per hour. This mixture is done
in the filter gallery.

3. TRANSMISSION
The contact tank contains treated water which is pumped from the treatment plant to the reservoir zones
through the high lift pumps where distribution to the consumers is done.
The company does its best to make sure that the standards of World Health Organisation, UNESCO and
Zambia Bureau of Standards are met. All this is done to ensure water is made safe for consumers.

MEASURES EMPLOYED TO ENSURE SAFETY OF PRODUCT

1. At every stage samples are collected and tested using a comparator to check if the water is
chlorinated.
2. Co-operating partners like National Water Supply and Sanitation Council (NWASCO), UNESCO
and World Health Organisation are involved in ensuring that the water is safe.
3. Safety audits are done annually to ensure that gadgets are in good working conditions and working
well.

MEASURES EMPOLYED TO ENSURE SAFETY OF EMPLOYEES AND THE

ENVIROMENTMENT
1. No one is allowed to handle Chlorine unless they are trained to do so, anyone found doing it is
charged.
2. Medicals are done every six months.
3. Trainings are done in safety policy and use of fire extinguishers.
4. Protective clothing is given to the employees depending on the type of job they do.
5. The company has a medical scheme for its employees.
6. When employees are sent to remove weeds they wear floaters in case of boat capsizing.
 7. Waste water is sent back to the river through separate pipes.

MEASURES EMPLOYED TO ENSURE SAFETY OF PRODUCTS TO CONSUMERS

1. The lab tests the samples as they pass through the different processes

CHALLENGES

 The cost of chemicals required for sedimentation and disinfection process like Aluminum
chlorohydrate (Sudfloc) and chlorine are very high because they are imported from South Africa.
 Despite having the water plant in Kafue, residents are still facing water challenges.
 The capacity of the plant has not increased even though the Kafue population has.
 The plant at Kafue does not have a generator to take care of its power needs in case of ZESCO power
interruptions. This affects the smooth running of the plant.
 There are breakdowns of the mechanical equipment that result in the reduced capacity of production.
 The infrastructure at the plant needs rehabilitation.
 The main water supplying pump from the source to the plant is too old resulting in water leakage at
some point.

RECOMMENDATIONS
 There is need to increase human resource to enhance productivity.
 The company needs to provide transport system for easy movement of its workers.
 There is need to repair or replace the old machines and leaking pimps
 There is need for proper safety attire especially for those handling gas chlorine.
 Academic tours should be done at the beginning of the academic year.
 Adequate transport should be provided during tours.
 Sensitization of waste management to communities that sluice in our water sources (Kafue river)
 Basic education of water purification at household level.
CONCLUSION
Water (H20) is an inorganic compound composed of vital chemical elements oxygen and hydrogen that
exists in gas, liquid and solid form. It is believed that it supports life of about 99% on planet earth. It is
therefore for this reason that it should be preserved and purified for promotion of health. Waterborne
diseases that people in various communities suffer are connected to the consumption of unclean water
(unpurified). Waste management of sewage is equally important as ineffective waste management can lead
to contamination of the source of water which supplies the larger population leading to various diarrhoea
diseases such as cholera.
REFERENCES
1. Basavanthappa BT (2011). Essentials of Community Health Nursing. Jaypee Brothers Medical
Publishers (P) LTD

2. Basavanthappa BT (2008). Community Health Nursing 2 ed edition. Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers
(P) LTD

3. Lusaka Water and Sewerage Company Kaseba plant. (2017) Kafue.

4. KfW:Zambia - Successful Water Kiosks, accessed on June 21, 2023

5. NWASCO. "Urban and Peri-Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Report 2010/11" (PDF).
Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 October 2011. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
6. WASH watch Country Statistics and Country profiles for the WASH sector, 2017
7. WHO and UNICEF (2017) Progress on Drinking Water, Sanitation and Hygiene: 2017 Update and SDG
Baselines. Geneva: World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund
(UNICEF), 2017
8. "WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Program for Water and Sanitation". Archived from the original on
2008-02-16. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
9. WHO/UNICEF (2015) Progress on sanitation and drinking water - 2015 update and MDG assessment,
Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation