Comparative Investigation of the Effect of Treatment Methods on Bacterial Population of Surface Water in Ado Ekiti, Nigeria

Abstract

Majority of rural populations do not have access to safe water supplies and depend mainly on untreated surface water such as streams, rivers, etc. This usually leads to the emergence of water borne diseases such as typhoid, dysentery, cholera, etc. Traditional methods of water purification in rural areas involve simple and treatments which majorly aim at the visible impurities from the water. Examples include: Boiling, filtration, Sedimentation, Solar disinfection. There is a high need for more effective and affordable water purification techniques in rural areas, in order to prevent water borne diseases. This study investigated the effects of different methods of water sanitation/treatments on the Bacterial population of Surface water (Stream) in Ado Ekiti, Ekiti state country. Raw water samples were collected from a selected stream in Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State country. The water was processed for the determination of bacterial densities and were subsequently subjected to sanitation using natural methods (Solar heating and Moringa oleifera seed extract) and chemical methods (Calcium hypochlorite and Citric acid) as treatment agents, at various concentration (between 0.5% - 2%). Solar heating of the water samples was affected for 7 hours (9am-4pm). Total bacterial and coliform counts (TBC and TCC) were determined. Reduction of TBC and TCC were significant when the water samples were treated with calcium hypochlorite, Moringa seed extract and solar heating. The pattern of purification and efficiency of the methods used were calcium hypochlorite (100%), solar heating (81-95%), Moringa oleifera seed extracts (61-99.4%), and citric acid (56%) bacterial load reduction. Calcium hypochlorite sanitation method gave the best bacterial load reduction effect. However, the use of natural methods of water sanitation such as solar heating and the addition of Moringa oleifera seed extract may be employed for surface water sanitation especially in rural communities in the absence of chemical agents such as calcium hypochlorite.