ASSESSMENT OF GROUND AND SURFACE WATER QUALITY IN SOME SUB-URBAN AREAS OF OWERRI, IMO STATE.

Abstract

This study was carried out to evaluate the water quality of the two major   sources of water, for drinking and domestic use, in Owerri-North; a suburban area of Owerri metropolis.  The two main water sources, the boreholes and Uramiriukwa River representing ground and surface water respectively, were sampled in this study.  The water samples from the River were collected from three spatial points, upstream, middle and downstream, while three boreholes, point 1, point 2 and point 3, were sampled, at different spatial points of approximately 14 km apart, while FUTO borehole served as the control point. The pollution levels of the water sources were determined using their physiochemical and biological parameter including, temperature, turbidity, electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solid (TDS), while the chemical parameters include pH, chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand (BOD), dissolved oxygen (DO), (HCO3), total hardness (TH), Chloride (Cl), Nitrate (NO3), Phosphate (POS4), sulphate Acidity, Alkalinity, Total iron (Fe2+), and biological parameters of e. coli, klebsiella, total coliform count and total bacterial count for which mean and standard mean error (SEM) were determined using the IBM SPSS software. The T-test was used to determine the difference in the physiochemical and biological properties of the Uramiriukwa River and the borehole water samples. Water quality index (WQI) of the Uramiriukwa River and borehole water samples were also determined using the weighted arithmetic method.  Results from this study shows that the physical properties of the River were poor considering the high turbidity, TSS, TDS, colour, and turbid appearance, while the borehole was heavily polluted with coliforms, and bacteria, including e. coli and klebsiella. Spatial variations have no significant difference (p>0.05) for the River water samples at upstream, middle stream and downstream, while there was significant difference in the three borehole water samples used in this study. Also, there was significant difference (p≤0.05) between the means physiochemical and biological parameters of the River and borehole water samples. Calculation for WQI showed that the borehole water was good for drinking, while the Uramiriukwa water samples were unfit for drinking with WQI score of 38.92 and 169.46 respectively. it was concluded that the River  was polluted with solid and chemical wastes as a result of anthropogenic activities, including dredging, industrial activities, laundry, and indiscriminate municipal waste disposal, as observed during field study. The presence of high level of coliform in the borehole and River water samples is an indication of fecal contamination, which is an indication of possible health risk. Standard water treatment especially filtration and disinfection, are required for the surface and ground water in the study area, in order to improve their quality for drinking and domestic use. There is need to monitor and regulate human activities around the water sources, since they are major factor for the water qualities.