PROJECT INFO
PROJECT TITEL
Improvement of health status of population of the Slovak Republic through drinking water re-carbonization
| ACRONYM | LIFE – WATER and HEALTH |
| PROJECT CODE | LIFE ENV/SK/0000 36 |
| PROJECT LOCATION | middle of Slovakia |
| TOTAL BUDGET | 948 275 EUR |
| EU CONTRIBUTION | 566 950 EUR |
| START | 01. september 2018 |
| END | 31. december 2022 |
| COORDINATING BENEFICIARY | Comenius University in Bratislava Faculty of Natural Sciences Mlynská dolina Ilkovičová 6 842 15 Bratislava |
SHORT DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT
The negative influence of drinking water with low Ca and Mg content on cardiovascular diseases (CVD) has been known since approximately the middle of the last century. This effect is best conceived by the familiar slogan of American scientist Schroeder: "soft water – hard vessels, hard water – soft vessels". Over the last 20 to 30 years, hundreds of scientific papers have been published that point to the negative impact of soft water (low Ca and Mg) on human health, mainly on increased incidence and mortality on CVD, oncological diseases, diabetes and the digestive tract. Based on the two previous projects under the LIFE + program (GEOHEALTH and LIFE FOR KRUPINA), it was confirmed that Ca and Mg in drinking water are the most important chemical elements for human health. With their increased content (Ca > 50 mg. l-1, Mg > 25 mg. l-1), people live in Slovakia longer (up to 4 – 5 years) and we observe reduced mortality rates for different diseases.
In this project, we will re-carbonize (increase the Ca and Mg content) drinking water in two water sources used to supply the population. Along with the monitored increase in Ca and Mg in drinking water, we will monitor the elasticity of vessels of the populations drinking water enriched with Ca and Mg and we will monitor their health status.
Project goal
The main objective of the project is to improve the health status of the population in two towns/villages of the Slovak Republic based on improved drinking water quality by re-carbonation.
THE FULFILLMENT OF THE PROJECT'S OBJECTIVES IS TO BE TAKEN INTO FORCE:
- improving the quality (by increasing the Ca and Mg content) of low-mineralized (soft) drinking water,
- the development and construction of two prototypes of technological equipment (re-carbonisation reactors) to increase Ca and Mg content in drinking water in two water sources used to supply the population with potable water,
- installation and operation of two prototypes – re-carbonisation reactors, • selecting two water sources suitable for re-carbonation,
- laboratory tests of carbonate rocks suitable for enrichment of Ca and Mg waters,
- by determining the optimal Ca and Mg content in drinking water, the most favourable for human health by means of risk analysis,
- implementation of biomonitoring to confirm improvement of population health status after increasing the quality of drinking water by increasing Ca and Mg content.
PROJECT TEAM MEMBERS
NAME | FUNCTION |
doc. RNDr. Stanislav RAPANT, DrSc. | Project manager |
Mgr. Veronika CVEČKOVÁ, PhD. (09/2018 - 06/2020) | Assistant of project manager, Coordinator for water sources |
Mgr. Juraj MACEK, PhD. (11/2018 - 06/2020) | Coordinator for health issues |
Ing. Mária LETKOVIČOVÁ, CSc. | Senior biostatistician |
prof. RNDr. Beáta STEHLÍKOVÁ, CSc. | Senior statistician |
Ing. Jozef IVANIČ (10/2018 - 06/2019) | Main technologist |
prof. Ing. Ján DERCO, DrSc. (10/2018 - 12/2019) | Senior constructor |
prof. RNDr. Edgar HILLER, PhD./ | Coordinator for dissemination |
Ing. Martin VRÁBEĽ (03/2019 - 07/2020) | Junior constructor |
doc. Ing. Jozef DUDÁŠ, PhD. (02/2019 - 12/2019) | Designer |
MUDr. Viktor KOSMOVSKÝ | Slovak hygienist |
MUDR. František KOŽÍŠEK, CSc. | International hygienist |
Mgr. Miriam MILÁČKOVÁ, PhD. (03/2019 - 08/2020) | Financial manager |
Mgr. Pavol ŠKOJEC | Coordinator for website |
| New positions | |
| Janka KROTÁKOVÁ | Activist Kokava nad Rimavicou |
| Will be determined later | Local water technologist 3 (Kokava nad Rimavicou) |
STEERING COMMITTEE MEMBERS
NAME | ORGANIZATION |
RNDr. Zuzana VALOVIČOVÁ | Public Health Authority of the Slovak Republic |
Ing. Elena MOLNÁROVÁ | Ministry of Environment of the Slovak Republic, Department of Environmental Programmes and Projects |
MUDr. Viktor KOSMOVSKÝ | Regional Public Health Office Zvolen |
Ing. Lenka LETAVAJOVÁ, PhD. | Ministry of Environment of the Slovak Republic, Department of water |
Ing. Anna VAJÍČEKOVÁ, PhD. | Water Research Institute |
RNDr. Ivan BARÁTH, CSc. | Ministry of Environment of the Slovak Republic, Department of Geology and Natural Resources |
Doc. RNDr. Dávid KRČMÁR, PhD. | Comenius University in Bratislava, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Department of Hydrogeology |
Doc. RNDr. Stanislav RAPANT, DrSc. | Comenius University in Bratislava, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Department of Geochemistry |