ABSTRACT
Water quality is the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of water that determines its suitability for various uses including drinking. Sanitation encompasses the provision of facilities and services for the safe disposal of human excreta and the promotion of hygienic behaviors to prevent disease transmission, which subsequently affects the overall health and well-being of a population. This study was conducted to get a comprehensive assessment of water quality, sanitation infrastructure, and the health status of residents within Aduwawa community. Sanitation infrastructure and practices is evaluated through surveys, questionnaires and site inspections Their water source`s physicochemical and bacteriological characteristics were examined using conventional analytical methods, membrane filtration, and standard plate techniques for water samples collected from seven locations at the Aduwawa residence. Questionnaires were used to assess the Aduwawa residents' health status, cleanliness, and water quality. Results showed that the residence's pH values varied from 4.15 to 6.53. The electrical conductivity (EC) varied from 14.67 µS/cm to 142.00 µS/cm. The range of turbidity was 0.02 NTU to 0.03 NTU. The range of salinity was 7.67 ppm to 70.33 ppm. For phosphate, nitrate and sulphate concentration their values range from 0.10 to 1.53 mg/l, 0.50 to 1.12 mg/l and 0.12 to 0.82 mg/l respectively. All seven places had range of values of iron at 0.02mg to 0.15mg. In this investigation, the range of the total heterotrophic bacterial population was 98 cfu/100ml to 303.33 cfu/100ml and range of total coliform was 14 to 221.75 cfu/100 ml. From the sanitation assessment, data recorded shows a large proportion (>115) of the populace having adequate number of toilets and only a fraction of them practiced waste sorting. In this survey, it was found that the majority of the populace`s primary source of water was borehole water. Even though most of the population practices good hygiene and had access to water, a sizeable fraction nevertheless suffers from illnesses like typhoid and dysentery. The findings resulting from this study provided a valuable insights into the current status of water quality, sanitation, and health within Aduwawa community, identifying priority areas for intervention, education and awareness of proper hygiene practices, help promote improvements in water and sanitation infrastructure in Aduwawa community.
