Assessment Of Water Quality Of Some Private Boreholes

Introduction

1.1 Background of the Study

Water is an important component of the earth covering about three quarters (3/4) of the earth’s surface and occurs on land, underground and in space. Without water life on earth would be impossible. It is often referred to as the “Liquid of life” because it constitutes up to ninety percent (90%) of the cell and serves as medium for the dissolution and transportation of body nutrients and other essential molecules. Without its availability for human use (through drinking) within a maximum of fourteen days, the body becomes dehydrated and life is endangered. In addition, about two thirds (2/3) of our body is made up of water, about 45 litres in the average adult. The brain is 5 percent water, the muscles 77 percent and the bones 33 percent (Akpan, 1998). According to him, we need to drink about two liters a day to stay healthy. The human body uses water to cleanse the blood as it passes through the kidney, bathes cells and tissues, regulates body temperature, carries oxygen around the body, transports food to the body organs, helps in food digestion, prevents a build-up of salts, and helps in removing carbon dioxide and waste products. Similarly, it is essential to terrestrial plant life and marine/aquatic flora and fauna. More so, in the life of human communities and economic activities, water is useful for sanitation, agriculture and fishery. In developing countries, thousands of children under five years die every day due to drinking contaminating water (WHO, 2004). Thus lack of safe drinking water supply, basic sanitation and hygienic practices is associated with high morbidity and mortality from excreta related diseases. Water-borne pathogens infect around 250 million people each year resulting in 10 to 20 million deaths world-wide. An estimated 80% of all illness in developing countries is related to water and sanitation and 15% of all child deaths under the age of five years in developing countries result from diarrhea diseases (WHO, 2004; Thompson and Khan,2000). According to Ayeni (2014), no fewer than seven million people across the world die of water borne diseases each year. Polluted water killed at least a child every 10 seconds and identified lack of potable water and poor hygiene as major causes of the high rate in child mortality in the world according to him. That, over 2.4 billion people across the world were without sanitation facilities, saying this had also contributed to the untimely death in most countries of the world including Nigeria. Also reported by Punch News Thursday, 2nd October, 2014, that more than 80 Nigerian refugees, fleeing from the Boko Haram insurgency are known to have died from cholera in refugee camps in Cameroon due to lack of adequate water supply and sanitation problems. The lack of safe drinking water and adequate sanitation measures could also lead to a number of diseases such as dysentery, salmonellosis, shigellosis and typhoid, and every year millions of lives are claimed in developing countries. The evaluation of potable water supplies for coliform bacteria is important in determining the quality level of drinking water. High levels of coliform counts indicate a contaminated source, inadequate treatment or post-treatment deficiencies (Mathew; Lechevallier; Cameron and Fetens, 1984). Many developing countries suffer from either chronic shortages of freshwater or the readily accessible water resources are heavily polluted (Lehloesa and Muyima, 2000).

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Groundwater sources are being increasingly used as drinking water yet, testing to see whether the water is of’ good quality is almost non-existent. Although, it is true that soils generally function to reduce the effect of microorganisms by a simple filtration mechanism, especially larger bacterial and protozoa, pollution of groundwater by micro-organisms, especially the located near septic tanks or landfills significantly do occur

1.3 Objective of the Study

The objectives of the study are;

• To identify and locate the sites of public and private borehole water supply sources in Uyo
• To compare the quality of public and private borehole water supply sources with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Federal Ministry of Environment (FMEnv.) drinking water standards.
• To examine the levels of variations in water quality between the two sources of water supply in the study area
• To suggest measures for maintaining acceptable quality of portable water supply in the area under study

1.4 Research Hypotheses

The hypotheses stated below are raised in order to actualize the objectives of this study.

Hypothesis One

HO: there are no the levels of variations in water quality between the two sources of water supply in the study area

HI: there are levels of variations in water quality between the two sources of water supply in the study area

Hypothesis Two

HO: there are no measures for maintaining acceptable quality of portable water supply in the area under study

HI: there are measures for maintaining acceptable quality of portable water supply in the area under study

1.5 Significance of the Study

The importance of this study is to identify the groundwater quality conditions from various sources in Uyo metropolis. The study will be beneficial to students, people of Uyo and the general public. It will also serve as reference to other researchers that will embark on this topic

1.6 Scope and Limitation of the Study

The scope of the study covers assessment of water quality of some private boreholes in housing estate in Uyo.

Limitation of Study

Financial constraint

Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).

Time constraint

The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.

1.7 Definition of Terms

Water Quality:

Water quality refers to the chemical, physical, biological, and radiological characteristics of water. It is a measure of the condition of water relative to the requirements of one or more biotic species and or to any human need or purpose.

Borehole:

A borehole is a narrow shaft bored in the ground, either vertically or horizontally. A borehole may be constructed for many different purposes, including the extraction of water, other liquids or gases

Housing Estate:

A housing estate is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Accordingly, a housing estate is usually built by a single contractor, with only a few styles of house or building design, so they tend to be uniform in appearance.

1.8 Organization Of The Study

This research work is organized in five chapters, for easy understanding, as follows

• Chapter one is concern with the introduction, which consist of the (overview, of the study), historical background, statement of problem, objectives of the study, research hypotheses, significance of the study, scope and limitation of the study, definition of terms and historical background of the study.
• Chapter two highlights the theoretical framework on which the study is based, thus the review of related literature.
• Chapter three deals on the research design and methodology adopted in the study.
• Chapter four concentrate on the data collection and analysis and presentation of finding.
• Chapter five gives summary, conclusion, and recommendations made of the study