Household Water Treatment: Chlorination – The Safe Water System, 2011. CDC.
The Safe Water System (SWS) was developed in the 1990’s in response to epidemic cholera in South America by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). The treatment method for the SWS is point-of-use chlorination by consumers with a locally-manufactured dilute sodium hypochlorite (chlorine bleach) solution. The SWS also incorporates emphasis on safe storage of treated water and behavior change communications to improve water and food handling, sanitation, and hygiene practices in the home and in the community. To use the chlorination method, families add one full bottle cap of the sodium hypochlorite solution to clear water (or 2 caps to turbid water) in a standard sized container, agitate, and wait 30 minutes before drinking.
