Physicochemical And Bacteriological Assessments Of Borehole Water Obtained From Sites Close To Dumpsites
Chapter One
Introduction
Waste generation by man started since the beginning of civilization as a consequence of human activities, involving the production of goods and services and the consumption of natural sources. Dumpsite is a piece of land where waste materials are dumped. Waste materials could be Garbage dump, rubbish dump, waste yard, toxic waste and domestic refuse (WHO,2000). According to Gore [1993], human being are made of water in roughly the same percentage as water is in the surface of the earth. Unequivocally , water is essential for the development and maintenance of the dynamics of every ramification of society.
Water is indeed life and thus the most important material resource without which life would be nonexistent. Availability of safe and reliable source of water is an essential prereguisite for sustained development (Asonye et al,2007) .
Groundwater is one of the major sources of drinking water all over the world. Freshwater quality and availability remain one of the most critical environment and sustainability issues of the twenty-first century (UNEP, 2002). Of all sources of freshwater on the earth, groundwater constitutes over 90% of the worlds readily availability freshwater resources with remaining 10% obtainable from lakes, reservoirs, river and wetlands (Boswinekel, 2000). Water is a vital component of the development of an area, as human settlement to a large extents, is dependent on the availability of reliable sources of water, preferably in close proximity to the settled localities . Ground water is also widely used as a source for drinking water supply and irrigation for crop agriculture (Zelkester and Everett, 2004). However, groundwater is not only a variable resource for water supply, but also a vital component of the global water cycle and the environment. As such, ground water provides water to rivers, lakes, ponds and wet lands helping to maintain water levels and sustain the ecosystems ( Kim et al., 2003).
Water is the medium of lifes processes and mans daily physiochemical requirement of water is about 3.6 liters (WHO, 2002).
About 70% of the human body weight is made up of water and many of the body functions depend on it. Apart from the very essentials use of water for drinking, it is required for a wide range of activities such as food preparation, laundering, personal and environmental hygiene. The availability of water in required quantity and quality is one of the indices of the development of a community or nation. Water is obtained from harvesting of rain, bodies of water (rivers, ponds) or from groundwater (wells, springs and boreholes). The term ground water has been used to describe the subsurface water which is beneath the water table in the soil and the geological formation that are fully saturated, which can be collected through wells, tunnels, boreholes, or drainage galleries or which flow naturally to the earth surface (Agbede & Adegoye, 2003). It is a vital source of water supply especially in places which experience long dry season that cause stream flow to stop and ponds to dry up. Ground water accounts for about 95% of global fresh water supplies. It is ideally suitable for drinking, requiring little or no treatment and is widely distributed, dependable and usually inexpensive to develop (Kehinde, 1998).
The increasing pollution of surface water with domestic and industrial wastes coupled with the alarming cost of construction of water treatment plants and distribution network for human use has made groundwater on attractive and important option in the social and economical development of many communities. Water obtained from borehole usually does not requires elaborate treatment. Usually, the removal of hardness and chlorination are the common treatment required.
Borehole water when contaminate with microorganisms cause a number of diseases of intestinal tract such as paratyphoid fever, cholera, dysentery, shigellosis and Amoebiabis (itah et al., 1996).
In safeguarding public water supplies, public health authorities and engineers rely on information obtained from the results of frequent bacteriological tests. Good and safe water quality is one of the bases of a sustainable development and the prevention of pollution of water sources, like the borehole water, will extend the survival mankind. Great emphasis should be laid on the potability and availability of water to man and his activities. Agencies like world health organization (WHO), United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and also the federal and State Ministries of Environment have arisen to these Challenges. In Nigeria, a national borehole programme was introduced in 1981 to provide a total of 1,500 boreholes at selected villages throughout the country.
In 1987, the Directorate for food, Roads and Rural Infrastructure (DFRRI) embarked on a nationwide rural water and sanitation project for the provision of 250 boreholes in each State of the Federation also, the United Nations International children Emergency Fund (UNICEF) assisted water and sanitation project engaged in provision of potable water in rural communities though borehole project in some selected states in Nigeria (Agbede & Adegoye, 2003) Although water can contain unwanted chemicals (from national sources and agricultural activities), the greatest risk to human health is from faucal contamination of waters supplies causing water-borne disease. The consequent illnesses are mostly treated with antibiotics. Unfortunately, there has been development of antimicrobial resistance by many strains of microorganisms which is now making it difficult to treat some infectious diseases. During resistant strains have reported among Staphylococci, gonococci, pneumoncocci, entrococci, (Riholdi et al., 2009), and gram negative bacteria including Salmonella, shigella, Klebsiella, Esccherichia Coli, psendomonas as well as among (Cheesebrough, 2002).
Water is essential to sustain life; therefore a satisfactory (adequate, safe and accessible supply of drinking water should be available to all. Every effort should be made to achieve a good quality of drinking water. Quality water is of basic importance of human physiology and mans continued existence depends very much on water availability. The provision of potable water to rural and Urban Population is necessary to prevent health hazards. Drinking water is one of the oldest public health issues and is associated with a multitude of health related concerns. Access to safe drinking water is a prerequisites to poverty reduction and prevention of the spread of water-borne and sanitation related diseases.
Water quality assessment has become a big issue today because of the potential hazards associated with the use of the potential hazards associated with the use of contaminated water supply. Consequent to the realization of the potential health hazards that may result from contaminated drinking water, contamination of drinking water from any source is therefore of primary importance because of the danger and risk of water borne diseases. Various researcher have reported on serious and severe illnesses like typhoid, cholera, decentry etc. resulting from the use of contaminated water supply. In general, certain requirements must be met for water to be fit for human consumption. These requirements are freedom from organisms and chemicals substances which might be injurious to health. Drinking water should be of such composition that consumers do not question the safety of the water. This implies that turbidity, coluor, taste and odour should be low, and macro-organisms (e.g. Worms, Asellus, aquatic and fly nymphs) should be absent. The world health organization has recommended continuous surveillance of water supplies, which should involve keeping a careful watch at all times, form public health point of view, over safety and sustainability of water supplies. This is to be achieved through sanitary inspection and water quality analysis. While sanitary inspection identifies potential risk factors of contamination and source of pollution, water quality analysis confirms whether the water supply is farcically contaminated. Water is an integral part of achieving all of the UN millennium Development Goals.
The major danger associated with drinking water sources is the possibility of this recent contamination by sewage or human and animal excreta (Pipes, 1981).
Aims And Objective.
Determine the bacterial loads of water obtain from borehole near dumpsites.
Isolate, characterize, and identify bacteria isolated from the borehole water samples.
Determine the susceptibility profile of bacteria isolated.
Determine the physicochemical properties of the borehole water samples.
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