Effects of storage on borehole water quality stored in plastic containers for prolong periods

Abstract

Water may become contaminated at any point between collection, storage and usage. This study examined the effects of storage on borehole water quality stored in plastic containers for prolong periods. Three brands of plastic containers filled with borehole water were collected from homes in Ugbowo, Benin city. Physicochemical parameters were determined using standard methods. Total bacterial and coliform counts were determined using the pour plate technique. Conductivity, TDS, Chloride, Sulphate and Nitrate were within the recommended standards while turbidity and total iron were above recommended standards. The isolates identified include: Klebsiella sp, Bacillus sp, E. coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Aspergillus flavus, Saccharomyces sp and Aspergillus niger. The total bacterial count in the water samples ranged from 1.4×10 3 cfu/ml to1.8×10 3 cfu/ml at week four while fungal counts was 1.3×10 2 cfu/ml to 1.6×10 2 cfu/ml. Bisphenol A was discovered to leach at detectable levels from the plastic containers as storage increased. The result of the BPA analysis revealed that BPA congeners ranged from 0.023mg/l within days of collection to 0.251ml/l at the fourth week of storage. This study has shown that storage of borehole water in plastic containers for prolonged period affects the bacteriological and chemical properties of the water, hence storage of borehole water in plastic for prolonged periods should be discouraged and discontinued.

Evaluation of Physicochemical and Bacteriological Properties of Borehole Water in Selected Areas of Benin City, Edo State

“…Other authors have also observed drinking water standards within WHO maximum permissible limit (Dhanaji et al 2016;Atuanya et al 2018) For example, the highest pH recorded in the study which was from residential area (5.58 ± 0.17) was within WHO pH limit of 6.5 -8.5. Atuanya et al (2018) similarly reported pH values of 5.6 -6.6 in stored borehole water in Benin City. It has been reported that pH values of 6.5-8.0 is good for water intended for consumption (Abdullahi et al (2013).…”

“…This could be as a result of silt, organic matter and sewage gaining access to the underground water (Ukpong and Okon, 2013;Palamuleni and Akoth, 2015). Other authors have also observed drinking water standards within WHO maximum permissible limit (Dhanaji et al 2016;Atuanya et al 2018) For example, the highest pH recorded in the study which was from residential area (5.58 ± 0.17) was within WHO pH limit of 6.5 -8.5. Atuanya et al (2018) similarly reported pH values of 5.6 -6.6 in stored borehole water in Benin City.…”