The Impact of Precipitation on Drinking Water Resources in the Sagarmatha National Park (Mt. Everest Region), Nepal

Abstract

This study focuses on the link between precipitation, the bacteriological characteristics, and the physical parameters of drinking water sources from 2016 to 2018 in the Sagarmatha National Park (Mt. Everest region), Nepal. Surface water shows a positive correlation between bacteria content, altitude and corresponding temperature, whereas water from springs shows no correlation between bacteria content and altitude and corresponding temperature. Correlation between precipitation data and both pH and conductivity suggests a link between drinking water quality and precipitation whereby high precipitation rates result in increased contamination of both surface water and springs used for drinking water. This data also indicates that during periods of low precipitation, water handling is likely to contribute to water contamination. These results highlight vulnerability to climate change as melting glacial ice and changing precipitation patterns are key factors for safe drinking water.

Spatial Variation of Nutrient Concentrations (NH<sup>+</sup><sub style="margin-left:-5px;">4</sub> and Cl<sup>-</sup>) in the Dudhkoshi River Basin, Sagarmatha National Park, Nepal

“…Given that the primary source of NH + 4 in the region is from human and/or animal waste this suggests that springs contain relatively little (or no) surface water contamination during the pre-monsoon dry season. These results agree with the conclusions of Nicholson et al[28] who suggest that during the premonsoon dry season, most village water sources are relatively uncontaminated. Journal of Water Resource and Protection However, surface water (streams) show a different trend.…”

“…The overall trend for all samples is decreasing in the case of temperature, total dissolved solids (TDS) and conductivity, and increasing pH with altitude (Figure 2, see [28] [29] for complete analyses including household use water). In 2017 average drinking water temperatures were 9.14 (±3.79)˚C: stream water 8.53 (±3.87)˚C, spring water 9.42 (±3.83)˚C.…”