Violations Identified at Veolia Water Company

According to the risk methodology established by the Government of Armenia, the Health and Labor Inspectorate of the Republic of Armenia has included Veolia Water LLC in its annual program for 2021 for the first time. This year, inspections were conducted to ascertain compliance with the requirements of the Minister of Health's orders N 803 and N 876 from 2002 (hygienic standards for drinking water quality and centralized water supply systems).

This inspection marks the first instance of such an extensive review based on the number of inspectors involved, laboratory analyses, the size of the inspected area, and other resources utilized. The inspections covered daily regulated water basins operated by the company and water supply sources throughout the republic.

The main violations recorded include the following: a part of the first sanitary protection zones is not delineated, particularly in rural areas; in some locations, the maintenance of the first sanitary protection zones is not conducted; not all buildings within the first zone are equipped with sewage systems and wastewater treatment facilities; and there are instances of breaches in the frequency of residual chlorine determination.

In light of the violations identified during the inspections, directives have been issued to Veolia Water LLC. It is noteworthy that the main indicators for drinking water quality generally comply with the existing norms, and the company conducts quality control on a daily basis within the established timelines.