Environmental Issues

The Chlorination process can cause respiratory and skin irritations. Contrary to the popular notion that the chlorine agent itself is the culprit, the adverse reactions are actually caused by the combination of human sweat and urine to the chlorine agents in the water.  Chlorine is also blamed for the unpleasant smell and taste of the water in the public pools. Respiratory discomfort and illnesses are also attributed to chlorine.

According to medical studies (Nemery  Nowak 2001791), the smell and irritant properties in the swimming pool are due to the chloramines, which include chloramines, monochloramines (NH2Cl), dichloramine (NHCl2) and trichloramine (NCl3). The chloramines are chemical products of the combination of the hypochlorites with the ammonia and amino-compounds coming from the sweat and urine of the swimmers. The production of chloramines depends on such factors as the degree of water chlorination, contamination of water, quantity of bathers, water temperature and the air circulation.

Ozonation
Disinfecting public water systems and swimming pools by ozonation is becoming more popular than chlorination, thereby reducing the requirement for the latter. This process is highly bacteriostatic. It is very effective in eliminating most of the bacterial and viral elements in the water.

Ozonation can be administered in two ways, through UV bulb or the Corona Discharge. In the UV bulb system, the ambient air is drawn through a cylinder and treated with the UV bulb.

The ozonation process does not leave residual sanitizer in the water after the ozone generator turns off, hence, small quantities of halogen (i.e. chlorine, bromine, hydrogen peroxide) must be maintained in the water. Some ozone generators are designed to operate 24 hours to minimize the need for halogen agents.

Ozone in excessive quantities can hazardous to breathing. Thus, most swimming pools eliminate residual ozone in the swimming pool. There is also no ozone emitted into the environment because it is usually depleted in the water sanitation process.

My Preferred Methods of Sanitizing the Public Swimming Pools
Based on my research, I would prefer the administration of a combination of pressure-fed filtering process and ozonation to cleanse and sanitize public swimming facilities.

The pressure-fed filtering process uses a filter which is placed in line with the water pump. The filter contains graded sand where water is filtered up to 10 micrometers in size. The sand used in this filter can last for up to six to seven years until all the rough edges are gone. The recommended sand proportion for public swimming facilities is 1 ton sand per 100,000 liters water. The pressure-fed filtering process is one of the most common and safest procedures for eliminating debris and solid wastes in the water.

To combine with the pressure-fed filtering process, I would also recommend the ozonation process because this is more effective in eliminating bacterial and viral pathogens without leaving hazardous residues in the swimming pools.