Potable Water Quality Characteristics of the Urban Areas of Peshawar (Pakistan) Part 1: Tubewell Water.

Abstract

Potable Water quality of the urban areas of Peshawar was monitored for various physical and chemical parameters. The importance of this reference data, related to the water quality of Peshawar was felt after spreading of some water borne diseases, mainly diarrhea in one of the areas of Peshawar (Sufaid Dheri) during the summer 1999 in which a few people had died and several were hospitalized. Forty three water samples from different tube wells of the urban areas of Peshawar were analysed for pH,TDS, TSS, electrical conductivity, turbidity, total hardness, calcium magnesium, alkalinity, chloride, nitrate sodium and potassium. The concentration of these analytes were found in the ranges; pH (6.0-7.9), TDS (180.20-351.82 mg/l), TSS (1.05-4.21 mg/l), Electrical conductivity (200-390 mg/l), turbidity (0.3-2.1 NTU). total hardness (126.17-458.9 mg/l) calcium (21.81-90.90 mg/l), magnesium (12.50-80.72 mg/l), bicarbonates (132-244 mg/1) chloride(10.04-54.45 mg/1) ,sulphate(16.43-80.28 mg/1),nitrate (1.8-35.2 mg/l), sodium (7.9-74.6 mg/1), and potassium (1.6-6.2 mg/1), Mean Concentration values of the different analytes of Peshawar water were also found. Average values of pH (7.06+-0.45), TDS (284.57+-51.16 mg/1), TSS (2.27+-1.03 mg/1), Electrical conductivity (315.58+-57.28 mg/1), turbidity (0.73+-0.42 NTU, total hardness (306.23 +-70.64 mg/1) , calcium(61.61+-12.23mg/1), magnesium(36.03+-13.47mg/1),bicarbonates(187.84+-25.87mg/1),Chloride (31.41+-10.55 mg/1), sulphate (49.43+-16.15 mg/1), nitrate (19.21+-10.58 mg/1), sodium (28.92+-9.95 mg/1), and potassium (3.65+-1.17 mg/1), Alkalinity (due to hydrooxide and carbonate) and nitrates were found absent. All the analytes were found to be within the WHO possible limits. This paper concludes that, waters of all the tube wells of Peshawar (understudy) are safe for human consumption provided the supply lines and the storage tanks are prevented from being contaminated. A lowering trend in the pH of underground waters of Peshawar was seen, the reason of this was not found. The results presented in this paper also contradict the previous statement about the nitrate concentration in the tube well waters of Peshawar to have been decreasing.