The most important factor in fieldwork is safety: Guidelines for samplers
The most important factor in fieldwork is safety. Surface waters can often contain pathogens and those taking water or biological samples are particularly at risk from leptospirosis, cryptosporidiosis and, increasingly in Europe, giardiasis. Those working with surface waters should always wear protective rubber gloves, avoid hand-to-mouth contact (i.e. do not touch your face, smoke, eat or drink without thoroughly washing your hands first with soap and clean water), and all wounds, scratches and skin rashes must be protected from contact with water. Many effluent discharges are chemically dangerous, as are spillages, so there is also a potential risk from chemical injury in some situations. Apart from pathogen transfer there is also a risk of injury or drowning when sampling. Some general guidelines are given below to help avoid serious injury while carrying out a sampling programme: (a) Never work alone. One person should always remain on land or in...