6th meeting on 3-4 October 2013 in Ispra
The meeting of this group, coordinated by the Austrian Environment Agency, gathered together 12 experts to discuss the early-warning challenges of detecting drinking-water contamination. An early warning system in this context is usually based on sensors of different types and characteristics. This meeting in particular reviewed the sensors currently available in the market, aiming at detecting chemical and microbiological compounds, measuring single or a combination of parameters at same time. It was concluded, firstly, that one of the main drawbacks at the moment to effectively implement sensors is a lack of standards for contamination testing in drinking water both in the EU and in USA, and, secondly, there exist poor links between available sensor technologies and water quality regulations. A report on this theme, prepared by the Thematic Group, has been published on the ERNCIP webpage. The next meeting will take place at JRC, Ispra, on 20-21 March 2014.