Browsing by Author "Akorli, Mawuenyega Elah"

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    Assessment of the quality of packaged drinking water sold in Kumasi metropolis, in the Ashanti Region of Ghana
    (2012) Akorli, Mawuenyega Elah
    The inhabitants of Kumasi have over the years mistrusted their pipe water hence relied on packaged water as a source of good drinking water. The high demand for the packaged drinking water has led to the situation where producers may have compromised the product quality for quantity. This study was conducted in the Kumasi metropolis, Ghana to examine the suitability of packaged water for consumption by evaluating their bacteriological, physical and chemical characteristics. These were total coliform, faecal coliform, pH, turbidity, apparent colour, conductivity, total dissolved solids, dissolved oxygen, ammonia, nitrite-nitrogen, nitrate-nitrogen, sulphate, chloride, phosphate, total alkalinity, manganese, total hardness, calcium and magnesium hardness and their ions. Water samples were analysed according to Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater. The results have shown that the physical and chemical parameters investigated were all within the Ghana Standards Board (1998) and World Health Organization permissible limits. The bacteriological analysis showed that brands of bottled water were not contaminated with total coliforms, faecal coliforms or Escherichia coli. Unfortunately, 55.6% of the brands of sachet water were contaminated with total coliforms, faecal coliforms and Escherichia coli bacteria. All the bottled water and 44.4% of sachet water examined were suitable for consumption.