Water quality monitoring: a case study of water pollution in minna, and its environs in Nigeria

Abstract

This work investigates the level of purity in Minna water and its environs. Water samples were collected from four water sources; Federal University of Technology (FUT), Minna water tank (Treated water), Maikunkele (Borehole), Chanchaga (Water treatment plant) and Tagwai dam (Raw). The following analyses of pH, Total dissolved Solids (TDS), Conductivity, Chemical oxygen demand (COD), Total hardness, Concentration of carbonate, chloride, nitrate and Bacterial count were carried out on the samples collected. From the analyses, it could be seen that there were difference in the quality of water from the various locations investigated. Apart from the micro bacterial count, the various sources conformed to the standard set by the World Health Organization (WHO). The high nitrate content of 4.6 mg/l in the Maikunkele water shows the danger of inappropriate location of borehole in the community. However, it could be said that majority of the water sources are not fit for human consumption due to the high microbial population.

Keywords: water quality, pollution, borehole sites, Total Dissolved Solids (TDS)

Botswana Journal of Technology Vol 14(1) 2005: 31-35