A Comparative Assessment of the Quality of Harvested Rainwater, Underground Water and Surface Water for Domestic Purposes in Ughelli, Southern Nigeria

Abstract

The study compares the quality of harvested rainwater, underground water and surface water for domestic purposes in Ughelli, Southern Nigeria. It is an empirical research study of three sources of water supply in the area. Water samples were collected from harvested rainwater, hand dug wells and from the river and laboratory analysis carried out in line with WHO (2010) threshold for drinking water quality. From the analysis of the water samples, it was discovered that variation exists in the physico-chemical parameters examined in the three sources of water supply in the area. However, parameters such as pH, temperature, TDS, sulphate and zinc are within the WHO (2010) permissible standard. Domestic water sources, such as hand dug wells, rainwater and rivers should be protected and monitored to check impairments in order to safeguard human health.

Keywords: assessment, quality, well water, river water, rain water, harvested.