| Abstrakt: |
Iworoko community is a rural area where people inhabitants consume water without recourse to the quality evaluation. This research focused on the hydrogeochemistry and bacteriological evaluation of the shallow wells' water in Iworoko-Ekiti, Southwest Nigerian with a view to establish the potability and suitability status of the groundwater for other domestic and irrigational uses. The Multi-parameter Testr™ 35 Series was utilized to determine the in-situ physical parameters, which are pH, temperature (measured in degrees Celsius), electrical conductivity (μS/cm), and total dissolved solids (mg/l). The main ions were determined using Atomic Absorption Spectrometer for the concentrations of the cations and colorimetric method for the anionic concentrations. Bacteriological evaluation was done using nutrient agar technique. Findings from this investigation revealed that the temperature ranged from 25.5 to 32.5 °C (avg. 28.43 °C), while the pH, EC, and TDS values ranged from 6.4 to 12.1 (avg. 10.0), 1.46 to 807 μS/cm (avg. 295.5 μS/cm), and 1.095 to 605 (avg. 221.6 mg/l), respectively. The results indicated that virtually all the wells' water in the study area are alkaline with pH greater than 7 except for one location (L1) where the water was acidic (6.4). It was only at the well 1 that the water sample met the required standard for drinking water while all other water samples fell outside the standard. The TDS and EC were within the approved standard for drinking water. However, Water Quality Index (WQI) evaluation revealed that only 26.7% of the water samples fell in the good to excellent water categories while the rest (73.3%) were in unfit to poor water classes. Furthermore, all chemical values were within the approved standard for drinking water except nitrate in which 93% of the water samples had concentrations above the approved 50-mg/l standard for drinking water. The order of cation dominancy is Ca2+ > Na+ + K+ > Mg2+, while that of anion is Cl− > HCO3− > SO42− > NO3−. The chemical evolution of groundwater in the study area was dominantly controlled by weathering of rocks in the environment of the study area. The principal water type in the area is mixed CaMgCl water type (47%) while the CaCl and NaCl are at par accounting for a total of 53%. All irrigation parameters (Kelly's ratio, magnesium, and sodium hazard) show that the groundwater in the area are largely suitable for irrigation. The results of the microbial investigation showed that all the wells examined are contaminated with bacteria, fungus, and yeast. The groundwater in the study area is low mineralized but polluted by nitrate and microbial which are due majorly to anthropogenic activities in the area. The wells' water in the study area is not potable but good for irrigation purpose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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