Physicochemical Assessment of Bore-Well Water Quality in Pokhara Valley

Abstract

Bore-well water is an important sources of drinking water in Pokhara Valley, Nepal, and regular monitoring of water quality is necessary for safeguarding of public health. The objectives of this research is to study the physicochemical and microbial quality of bore-well water collected from Chhinedanda, Bagar, and Malepatan areas of Pokhara Valley. There is lack of research Physicochemical Assessment of Boring Water of different areas in Pokhara. Three separate bore-well water samples were collected during the morning hours from each study site and analyzed according to the standard methods recommended by the American Public Health Association (APHA). The result of this study revealed that pH (7.0-7.56), EC (224-253 µS/cm), DO (7-8.5mg/L), total alkalinity (170-200mg/L), chloride (21.27-28.4), and free carbon dioxide (8.8-17.6mg/L). So that these results are acceptable by World Health Organization (WHO) and National Drinking Water Quality Standards (NDWQS). However, total hardness was 300-320mg/L and hardness of water is higher than the WHO guideline value and arsenic concentrations is in range of 0.018-0.024mg/L and so that concentration of arsenic   were higher than WHO permissible range of 0.01mg/L. Furthermore, total coliform bacteria were detected in every water samples indicating that the bore-well water is unsafe for drinking due to microbial contamination. The findings suggest that the studied bore-well water sources are not completely safe for direct drinking purposes without treatment and regular monitoring.