Community Perception and Laboratory Analysis of the Quality of Drinking Water Sources in the Kpedze Community of the Volta Region
Loading...
Date
2018-10-31
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
This study was carried out to determine the bacteriological safety of drinking water sources of the people of Kpedze in the Volta Region, Ghana. The survey conducted using structured questionnaires captured views of households on the quality of water they use and the treatment methods employed before drinking. Membrane filtration and pour plate methods were employed for the microbiological analysis of the water samples. Of the sixty (60) randomly selected households, 78.3 % (47) preferred tap water to other drinking water sources. About 73.3 % (44) said their drinking water tasted normal while 70 % (42) said that there was no foul smell associated with their water; however, 76.7 % (46) observed sediments collected at the base of their storage containers used. Most respondents [79.2 % (42)] observed that it usually takes more than a month for broken pipe lines to be fixed. In the laboratory analyses, samples from the river had total coliform (TC) counts ranging from 1.162 x 103 ± 47.00 cfu/100mL to 1.488 x 103 ± 279.00 cfu/100mL, faecal coliform (FC) counts ranging from 3.92 x 102 ± 20.00 cfu/100mL to 6.04 x 102 ± 47.00 cfu/100mL, E. coli counts ranging from 1.18 x 102 ± 40 cfu/100mL to 1.22 x 102 ± 51.00 cfu/100mL, and total heterotrophic bacteria (THB) ranging from 2.60 x 102 ± 118.00 cfu/1mL to 7.67 x 102 ± 204 cfu/1mL. The tap water had TC counts ranging from 6.98 x 102 ± 47.00 cfu/100mL to 1.122 x 103 ± 6.00 cfu/100mL and 4.00 ± 2.00 cfu/100mL to 1.102 x 103 ± 210.00 cfu/100ml for FC counts. E. coli levels in tap water ranged from 2.00 ± 1.00 cfu/100mL to 1.48 x 102 ± 53.00 cfu/100mL while THB ranged from 9.7 x 101 ± 20.00 cfu/mL to 1.577 x 103 ± 662.00 cfu/mL. Water from the hand dug well had TC counts ranging from 5.73 x 102 ± 26.00 cfu/100mL, FC levels of 31.00 ± 18.00 cfu/100mL, E. coli counts of 2.00 ± 2.00 cfu/100mL and THB of 3.09 x 102 ± 94 cfu/mL. Samples from the borehole had TC levels of 5.10 x 102 ± 78.00 cfu/100mL, FC counts of 3.00 ± 2.00 cfu/100mL, E. coli counts of 0.00 ± 0.00 cfu/100mL and THB counts of 2.76 x 102 ± 180.00 cfu/mL. The physico-chemical analysis of the water samples revealed pH 5.86 for the tap water, 6.19 for the hand dug water, pH of 7 for the borehole water and 5.91 for water from the river. The observational checklist revealed that the odour and taste were inoffensive. Levels of calcium, magnesium, iron and nitrate were all found to be below the Ghana Standards Authority (GS175-1) recommended limits for drinking water. From the survey, it was identified that the Kpedze community does not rely on a single source of water for domestic purposes. Using E. coli as the indicator organism, water from the borehole was found to be safe (0.00 cfu/100ml) among all the sources sampled.
Description
A thesis submitted to the Department of Food Science and Technology, College of Science, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Food Quality Management, 2017