Asi Quiggle Atud [1]a *, Ajeagah Gideon Aghaindum [2],Zoua Vincent de Paul [1] b, Visiy Edna Buhnyuy [1]a, Kameni Ngounou M. Bernard [1]a, Teikeu Assatse William[1]a, Tsomene Namekong [2] Pierre [2], Okoa Amougou Thérèse Nadège [2], Fritzgerald Kogge Bine [1] b
[1] aDepartment of Environmental Engineering, bDepartment of Fundamental and Cross-Cutting Sciences, National Advanced School of Public Works, P.O Box 510, Yaounde, Cameroon
[2] Department of Animal Biology and Physiology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Yaounde I, P.O Box 812, Yaounde, Cameroon
* Correspondence: asiatud@yahoo.com
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-2658-3684
Abstract
Groundwater is an important source of drinking water stored in aquifer of the earth. The vulnerability of groundwater can lead to pollution and health risk. The main objective of this study was to assess the microbiological quality and the influence of physico-chemical factors on water used for consumption in sub-urban areas of the Centre Region of Cameroon. Water samples were collected from sixteen (16) wells within four sub-divisions and the physico-chemical and microbial parameters were determined using standard methods. The physico-chemical analysis showed that, the temperature (24.87±3.22 °C), suspended solids (11.17±8.95 mg/l) and pH (6.51±0.84 UC) fall within the World Health Organization’s standard values while the turbidity (34.33±36.80 FTU), orthophosphate (0.58±0.61 mg/l) and ammoniacal nitrogen (0.23 ±0.42 mg/l) concentrations were above limits which make it difficult to appreciate the quality of water. However, microbial analysis provides a more precise evaluation of water quality. The microbiological analysis revealed the presence of coliforms and streptococci which indicate fecal contamination at a recent time with the presence of Escherichia coli suggesting the potential coexistence of other more harmful pathogens. The diversity of protozoan species was represented by Microsporidium spp. (84%) Cryptosporidium spp. (10 %), Entameoba histolytica (4 %) and Giardia intestinalis (3%). Kruscal-Wallis test shows variation of oocysts and cysts between seasons comparing to spores (P < 0.05). The results highlight the importance of water monitoring both with bacteria and protozoa, particularly Microsporidium spp., which is less commonly known in tropical regions of Africa.
Keywords: Water quality, Bacteria, Spores, Oocysts, Cysts, Health risk, Environmental monitoring, Groundwater