Lack of Application of Accepted Engineering Practices at Walkerton and Ethical Issues – Memorandum
Memorandum
Date: xx/mmm/yy
To: Chief Engineer
From: your name
Subject: Lack of Application of Accepted Engineering Practices at Walkerton and Ethical Issues
Introduction
In May 2000, Walkerton’s drinking water system became contaminated with deadly Escherichia Coli bacteria resulting in death of seven people and pushing more than 2300 people ill. In wake of the event, Chief Engineer has demanded the explanation on evaluation of lack of application of accepted engineering practices and ethical issues involved in Walkerton’s event. The current memo addresses the issues related to unprofessional/unethical behaviour of PUC operators, falsification/misrepresentation of critical information and measures that could’ve been taken by PUC operators to avoid outbreak or reduce its likelihood. It is found that had the operators, MOE and PUC commissioners discharged their duties well, the impact of outbreak could’ve been reduced.
Lack of Monitoring:
Appropriate response of PUC was expected by the residents of Walkerton following the outbreak of deadly Escherichia Coli O157:H7 into Walkerton’s drinking water system and its deadly impact on community (O’Connor, 2002). If the PUC had followed proper turbidity monitoring of Well 5 and use of continuous chlorine residual, the outbreak would have been prevented. The overall scope of the outbreak would have been reduced if Walkerton PUC had installed chlorine measuring monitors with alarms and automatic shut-off mechanism at Well 5and followed it up daily during the critical period when the contamination was entering the system. Although, daily monitoring of Well 5 would not have prevented the outbreak, but it is very likely that it would’ve significantly reduced the outbreak’s scope of bacteria. In particular, the PUC could have followed continuous monitoring of chlorine residuals and installed monitors with alarms and automatic shut-off mechanism at Well 5 for detection of exceeding bacteria levels in water system. Had this been done, appropriate actions could have been taken for preventing contamination from entering the water distribution system and causalities would have been reduced.
Incompetence:
The requirement of the turbidity monitoring was to take four samples of water per day or to install a continuous turbidity monitor which had not been followed properly (O’Connor, 2002). Failure to use the continuous monitoring at Well 5 stemmed from lacking inspections programs of MOE, lacking training of PUC operators and lack of expertise necessary for identifying the vulnerability of surface contamination. Failing to use adequate doses of chlorine and engaging into host of improper operating practices led to the outbreak on May 21, 2000 in Walkerton (O’Connor, 2002). The code of ethics for engineers requires the professionals to continue to develop appropriate knowledge and expertise and practice in accordance with legal and statutory requirements with commonly accepted standards of the day (Engineers Australia, 2018). It appears that the in order to avoid contamination, engineers at PUC should have showed competence by virtue of training and experience for detecting the bacteria levels in the water supply to avoid contamination before it entered the distribution system. Had the operators at PUC been trained well, they would’ve known that for water systems like Walkerton’s, the well water should’ve been treated with sufficient chlorine to inactivate the contaminants in the raw water. Under Chlorination Bulletin, if the chlorine residual of 0.5 mg/L had been maintained at Well 5 in May 2000, 99% of bacteria would’ve been killed (O’Connor, 2002). The operators at PUC showed incompetence and inadequate knowledge throughout the outbreak duration. It would’ve been pretty simple process for a competent water operator to obtain and interpret the lack of chlorine residual in Well 5 along with its implications so that the well could’ve been turned off and community could’ve been alerted at right time.
Professional malpractice:
Two serious failures on the part of Walkerton PUC operators were detected in the Walkerton’s event. One relates to the operational problem discussed above while second actually relates to the manner in which operators responded to the outbreak in May 2000. PUC general manager Mr. Koebel actively misled the health unit staff by ensuring that the water was safe to be consumed on May 19 (O’Connor, 2002). The failure to disclose the actual results to the health unit staff can be attributed to professional malpractice carried out by PUC general manager. The evidence from enquiry suggests that under Mr. Koebel’s management, Walkerton’s PUC engaged into many improper operating practices that included misstatement about locations at which the microbiological sampling tests were taken. The professional malpractice continued when false entries were being made in daily operating sheets about chlorine level checks (O’Connor, 2002). I assume that Mr. Koebel indulged into improper and professional malpractice when he continued to submit false annual reports to MOE on regular basis despite of knowing that these practices were improper. Code of ethics particularly requires professionals to provide clear and timely communication on issues related to engineering, be sensitive to public concerns, inform clients of the likely consequences of proposed activities on community and avoid engagement in corrupt or fraudulent behaviour (Engineers Australia, 2018). On top, the code of ethics requires the professionals to act in professional manner when something wrong is being perceived (Engineers Australia, 2018). It means, Mr. Koelbel must’ve responded professionally when he was made aware of the illness in community by reporting the correct test results to health units on May 15th.
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