Qualidade da água para o consumo humano. Um estudo no Bairro Tchavola-Lubango

Abstract

Water is essential for the existence and well-being of human beings, and must be available in quantity and quality as a guarantee for the maintenance of life. Human life, food security and the maintenance of ecosystems depend on it. It is vital for poverty reduction and sustainable development. Water quality is vulnerable to environmental and human conditions to which it is exposed and, in most cases, treatment is required to make it potable. The present work aims to infer about the Water Quality, specifically with the determination of the physical-chemical and microbiological parameters of the water consumed by the population of Bairro Tchavola-Lubango, which include color, turbidity, temperature, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, pH , alkalinity, aluminum, iron and total hardness. As a result of a non-formal interview, it was revealed that the residents resort to alternative sources of water for their consumption, wells, probes, boreholes and tank trucks, and that it has not been treated for this purpose, which represents a threatens public health, such as the occurrence of waterborne diseases. The neighborhood has a high population growth, poor sanitation in some areas, where solid waste is thrown outdoors without proper treatment, open pits, poor treatment of wastewater, etc. The determined results of the water samples under study allowed us to infer that it is not within the potability standards recommended by the WHO and Decree 261/11. The waters have a high turbidity content (for the waters of the wells), values of iron, aluminum, total dissolved solids, alkalinity and hardness above the recommended specifications. Total coliforms were found in all samples and fecal coliforms in the waters of the wells, which requires corrective measures for human consumption. For its implementation, theoretical, empirical and statistical methods and research techniques were used.