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The raw water quality and associations between the factors considered as threats to water safety were studied in 20 groundwater supplies in central Finland in [2002][2003][2004]. Faecal contaminations indicated by the appearance of Escherichia coli or intestinal enterococci were present in five small community water supplies, all these managed by local water cooperatives. Elevated concentrations of nutrients in raw water were linked with the presence of faecal bacteria. The presence of on-site technical hazards to water safety, such as inadequate well construction and maintenance enabling surface water to enter into the well and the insufficient depth of protective soil layers above the groundwater table, showed the vulnerability of the quality of groundwater used for drinking purposes. To minimize the risk of waterborne illnesses, the vulnerable water supplies need to be identified and appropriate prevention measures such as disinfection should be applied.

Human urine and faeces are products formed every day in every human society. The volume and fertilisation value of urine is higher than that of faeces. This paper reviews data that urine has been used successfully as a fertiliser for cereals and some vegetables. According to the literature, urine fertilised plants may have produced higher, similar or slightly lower yields than mineral fertilized plants but they invariably resulted in higher yields than non-fertilised plants. There have been no microbiological risks associated with any products. The taste and chemical quality of the products are similar to plants treated with mineral fertilisers. Separating toilets, where urine and faeces are separated already in the toilet, could be beneficial not only in poor but also in the industrialized countries. A separating toilet could be installed also in old buildings and it could allow individuals to live in coastal areas, mountainous or other sensitive environments. In poor areas, urine fertilisation could increase food production also in home plots and reduce hunger. It could also combat water contamination and help to reduce diseases caused by enteric micro-organisms. If urine were to be viewed as a resource rather than a waste product, more families could be encouraged to install low-cost toilets which would especially improve the wellbeing of women.

Composts produced from municipal source separated biowaste (Biowaste), a mixture of biowaste and anaerobically digested sewage sludge (Biosludge) and cattle manure (Manure) were examined for their maturity and hygiene quality. The composts were applied to a potato crop in 2004 and to a barley nurse crop of forage ley in 2005 in a field experiment. Numbers of faecal coliforms, enterococci, clostridia and Salmonella in field soil were determined 2 weeks and 16 weeks after compost applications. Municipal compost batches chosen based on successful processing showed variable maturity during field application, and the need to evaluate compost maturity with multiple variables was confirmed. The numbers of faecal coliform were similar in all compost types, averaging 4.7 and 2.3 log( 10) CFU g(-1) in the first and second years, respectively. The highest number of enterococci was 5.2 log(10) CFU g(-1), found in Manure compost in the first year, while the highest clostridia numbers were found in Biosludge compost, averaging 4.0 log(10) CFU g(-1) over both years. Except for one case, less than 2.4 log(10) CFU g(-1) of faecal coliforms or clostridia were found in compost-fertilised soil, while the numbers of enterococci were mostly higher than in unfertilised soil (<4.2 or <3.2 log(10) CFU g(-1), respectively). No hygiene indicator bacteria were present in compost-fertilised potato at harvest. Overall, compost fertilisations caused rather small changes in the counts of hygiene indicators in the field environment.