{"title":"Physicochemical and bacteriological quality of drinking water in Debre Markos town, Northwest, Ethiopia.","authors":"Biachew Asmare, Amare Bekalu, Abaynesh Alamneh","doi":"10.1177/20503121261456516","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Access to safe drinking water is essential for human health; however, water contamination remains a major concern in developing countries such as Ethiopia. Rapid urbanization and inadequate sanitation threaten water quality. This study evaluated the physicochemical and bacteriological quality of drinking water.</p><p><strong>Objective: </strong>This study aimed to assess the physicochemical and bacteriological quality of drinking water in Debre Markos Town in 2024.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A cross-sectional study was conducted using 66 water samples collected from boreholes, disinfection points, water taps, and household storage containers through stratified simple random sampling. Sample collection and laboratory analysis were performed according to ES ISO 5667-1 (2001) guidelines.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Among the physicochemical parameters assessed, temperature, pH, electrical conductivity, turbidity, nitrate, and fluoride levels generally met WHO standards, except for elevated temperatures (>15°C) at the source level. Free residual chlorine levels in source water, tap water, and household storage containers were below the recommended limits, whereas satisfactory levels were observed at the disinfection points. Bacteriological analysis revealed no detectable total or fecal coliforms at the disinfection points. However, total coliforms were detected in 22 (81.5%) tap water samples, 24 (88.9%) household water samples, and three borehole samples. In addition, fecal coliforms were detected in 3 (37.5%) borehole samples, 17 (63%) tap water samples, and 21 (77.8%) household water samples.</p><p><strong>Conclusion and recommendation: </strong>Although most physicochemical parameters met acceptable standards, water temperature, free residual chlorine, total coliforms, and fecal coliforms exceeded recommended limits in several samples. Strengthening source protection, ensuring effective disinfection, and maintaining regular water treatment are essential to improve drinking water quality in Debre Markos Town.</p>","PeriodicalId":21398,"journal":{"name":"SAGE Open Medicine","volume":"14 ","pages":"20503121261456516"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2000,"publicationDate":"2026-06-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13230664/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"SAGE Open Medicine","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1177/20503121261456516","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2026/1/1 0:00:00","PubModel":"eCollection","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"MEDICINE, GENERAL & INTERNAL","Score":null,"Total":0}
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Abstract
Background: Access to safe drinking water is essential for human health; however, water contamination remains a major concern in developing countries such as Ethiopia. Rapid urbanization and inadequate sanitation threaten water quality. This study evaluated the physicochemical and bacteriological quality of drinking water.
Objective: This study aimed to assess the physicochemical and bacteriological quality of drinking water in Debre Markos Town in 2024.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using 66 water samples collected from boreholes, disinfection points, water taps, and household storage containers through stratified simple random sampling. Sample collection and laboratory analysis were performed according to ES ISO 5667-1 (2001) guidelines.
Results: Among the physicochemical parameters assessed, temperature, pH, electrical conductivity, turbidity, nitrate, and fluoride levels generally met WHO standards, except for elevated temperatures (>15°C) at the source level. Free residual chlorine levels in source water, tap water, and household storage containers were below the recommended limits, whereas satisfactory levels were observed at the disinfection points. Bacteriological analysis revealed no detectable total or fecal coliforms at the disinfection points. However, total coliforms were detected in 22 (81.5%) tap water samples, 24 (88.9%) household water samples, and three borehole samples. In addition, fecal coliforms were detected in 3 (37.5%) borehole samples, 17 (63%) tap water samples, and 21 (77.8%) household water samples.
Conclusion and recommendation: Although most physicochemical parameters met acceptable standards, water temperature, free residual chlorine, total coliforms, and fecal coliforms exceeded recommended limits in several samples. Strengthening source protection, ensuring effective disinfection, and maintaining regular water treatment are essential to improve drinking water quality in Debre Markos Town.
背景：获得安全饮用水对人类健康至关重要；然而，水污染仍然是埃塞俄比亚等发展中国家的一个主要问题。快速城市化和卫生设施不足威胁着水质。本研究对饮用水的理化和细菌学质量进行了评价。目的：对2024年德布雷马科斯镇饮用水的理化和细菌学质量进行评价。方法：采用分层简单随机抽样的方法，从钻孔、消毒点、水龙头和家庭储水容器中采集66份水样进行横断面研究。样品采集和实验室分析按照ES ISO 5667-1（2001）指南进行。结果：在评估的理化参数中，温度、pH值、电导率、浊度、硝酸盐和氟化物水平基本符合世卫组织标准，除了源水平温度升高（bbb15°C）。食水、食水及家居储存器的游离余氯含量均低于建议限值，而消毒地点的游离余氯含量则符合要求。细菌学分析显示，在消毒点未检测到总大肠菌或粪便大肠菌。自来水22份（81.5%）、家庭用水24份（88.9%）、钻孔3份（88.9%）检出总大肠菌群。此外，在3份（37.5%）钻孔样品、17份（63%）自来水样品和21份（77.8%）生活用水样品中检出粪便大肠菌。结论和建议：虽然大多数理化参数达到可接受的标准，但在一些样品中，水温、游离余氯、总大肠菌群和粪便大肠菌群超过了建议限度。加强源头保护、确保有效消毒和保持定期水处理对于改善德布雷马科斯镇的饮用水质量至关重要。
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