Timothy Terlumun Ornguga
Department of Biology, College of Education, Katsina-Ala
Abstract
The physico-chemical analysis of 6 brands of sachet water sold on the campus of College of Education Katsina-Ala was evaluated to compare whether they met the specification of the World Health Organization (WHO) and Nigeria industrial standard (NIS) for drinking water. Parameters such as colour, taste/ odour, PH/chloride/ potassium/ calcium/ electric conductivity, oxygen demand (OD)/biological oxygen demand (BOD) and total dissolved solid (TDS) were evaluated. Coliform counts were determined using standard methods. Laboratory results showed that all samples met the physico-chemical standards of WHO & NIS. Although all the brands of sachet water did not conform with WHO and NIS standard of permissible coliform level for drinking water/ t-test result showed that there was no significant difference between the sachet water qualities and the WHO and NIS standard. The conclusion of this study based on the result is that the sachet water sold in the campus of College of Education Katsina-Ala is of good quality and is safe for human consumption. It is however recommended that producers of these sachet water should improve in the biological treatment of the water they produce.