Microbiological and physicochemical assessments of groundwater quality at Punjab, Pakistan

Abstract

The assessment of groundwater is essential for the estimation of suitability of water for safe use. An attempt has been made to study the groundwater at the district level of Punjab, Pakistan. These samples were analyzed for various water quality parameters like pH, color, odor, conductance, total suspended solids, trace metals (Fe, cu, B, Ba, Al, Cr, Cd, Ni, Mn and Se), ionic concentration (HCO 3 , CO 3 , Cl, SO 4 , Na, K, Ca, Mg, NO 3 , NO 2 , NH 4 , F, PO 4 and CN) and for microbiological enumeration (total viable count, total and fecal coliforms Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp. and Pseudomonas spp.). The data was analyzed with WHO guidelines/ recommendations. The results of physical analysis indicated that all samples are safe except the groundwater of Kasur and Khanewal District. About 66.67% samples are out of total suspended solids (TSS) limit. Microbiologically, only six groundwater of Punjab districts are found potable according to WHO limits. In the trace metals analysis, highest level of iron was detected in Jhang while the groundwater of three districts were not potable due to high level of boron and nickel but the groundwater of all districts was found safe with respect to Ba, Al and Cr. As far as ionic concentration is concerned, 11 districts were found not to be within WHO limit in the case of bicarbonates, seven in phosphates, five in floride, and eight in calcium and potassium. Only 10 districts fall within the limit of chlorine and all samples showed satisfactory results in the case of CN, CO 3 , NO 2 , NO 3 , Mg, SO 4 and NH 4.

Assessment of potentially toxic elements in groundwater through interpolation, pollution indices, and chemometric techniques in Dehradun in Uttarakhand State

“…In certain studies conducted over the past three to four decades, toxic element concentrations in groundwater samples surpassed WHO threshold limits (WHO 2021 ). There have also been reports of toxic elements contamination of groundwater in a number of South Asian countries, including Bangladesh (Simu et al 2018 ; Islam and Islam 2020 ; Zakir et al 2020 ) and China (Li et al 2017 ; Lou et al 2017 ; Lu et al 2018 ), India, and Pakistan (Afzal et al 2014 ; Hassan and Nawaz 2014 ; Usman et al 2017 ). Other countries throughout the world have also seen toxic elements poisoning of groundwater, including Nigeria (Nwankwoala et al 2011 ), Denmark (Jensen et al 2000 ), Egypt (El-Salam and Abu-Zuid 2015 ), Myanmar (Bacquart et al 2015 ), Bolivia (Garcia et al 2005 ), and Russia (Galitskaya et al 2017 ).…”

Effect of Climate Change and Human Activities on Surface and Ground Water Quality in Major Cities of Pakistan

“…Numerous places around the city of Lahore were found to have significant microbiological contamination (total coliform bacteria, total fecal coliform, and total plate counts) [10,21,28,48]. A few of the causes of bacteriological contamination in the research area were old and corroded water mains, the location of water supply pipes close to sewage lines, an intermittent water supply system, blocked sewer lines, and insufficient storm drainage [49].…”

Quality Assessment of Drinking Water in Vehari District of Punjab, Pakistan

“…It means that the DW of selected areas contains a safe concentration of nitrate ions. An elevated concentration of nitrates is a probable health risk, especially it may result in the disease "Methemoglobinemia" a blood disorder, also known as a baby blue syndrome in human beings (Hassan and Nawaz, 2014).…”