Although a water utility's jurisdiction generally ends at municipal borders, it can participate in total water quality management by maintaining contact with regional planning commissions, the DNR and upstream industries and municipalities. Protecting our watersheds as much as possible from human and animal wastes provides an important firewall between humans and cryptosporidium and giardia. At the same time, we must realize that both organisms are prevalent in the environment and may also be found in high-quality filtered water. For municipalities, installing more effective treatment alternatives, such as ozone treatment, and operating treatment systems at peak efficiency at all times, can backstop watershed management practices. Not only in water Drinking water supplies represent the greatest potential for large-scale outbreaks of crypto and giardia, but there are other ways these parasites can be passed.
Giardiasis is a common ailment of children in day care centers.
Statistics from the Department of Health show that children under the age of five are three times more likely to contract giardiasis than older children or adults. Although scientists are not sure how many giardia cysts it takes to infect a human, it is known that a soiled diaper can contain millions.