Assessment of quality of piped water supplied to households in Western Accra (Ghana)

Abstract

The quality of treated water supplied to Western part of Accra from the Weija Headwork has been assessed. While the quality of water from the Headwork was found to be acceptable by WHO standards, more than half of water samples collected from household taps contained total coliform bacteria (0 - 120 CFU/100 mL), and less than a quarter indicated faecal coliform (0 - 25 CFU/100 mL) contamination. The coliform bacteria in the tap water probably originated from intrusion of coliform-infested water, or growth of E Coli in the distribution sys-tem. Frequent breaks in many of the pipe lines resulted in water leakages, which also served as conduits for contaminant transport into the distribution system. Such contamination could also be enhanced through inciden-ce of negative water pressure from water rationing.