Assessing the attenuation of microbial contaminants of Al-Kufa River water through the natural process of riverbank filtration

Expanding urbanization, socioeconomic factors, and agricultural activities have led to contamination of the natural water resources in Iraq. The objective of this study was to assess the riverbank filtration (RBF) process in purifying the water of Al-Kufa River from pathogens. The riverbank filtration is a natural approach that helps in the enhancement of the quality of river water, and it is a relatively cost-effective, and sustainable process. This study utilized microbiological approaches to monitor the water quality of wells in comparison with river water. In Al-Kufa district of Al-Najaf governorate in Iraq, eight wells were constructed at different locations adjacent to Al-Kufa River. Total plate count, coliform count, fungal count, and fecal coliform count were among the microbiological parameters tested. The findings of the current study showed a difference in the pathogen count between the wells and river water, but the riverbank filtration process did not meet the World Health Organization guidelines. From this, we concluded that, if the pumping well is continuously running, RBF as a preliminary treatment of surface water would be a promising and potentially viable application in purifying water supply. Finally, in future RBF process is supposed to be taken into consideration to protect the security of water supply from waterborne pathogens.