Physico-Chemical Analysis of Drinking Water from the Collector Wells in Vallipuram Costal Area of the Jaffna Peninsula, Sri Lanka

Abstract

Groundwater is one of the principal sources of water for domestic use in Sri Lanka. Water should be safe for consumption and it should be free from pathogens, poisonous substances and excessive mineral and organic matter. Jaffna peninsula mainly depends on the groundwater for drinking, agriculture and industry. The quality of groundwater is getting deteriorated due to diverse factors.The study was aimed at assessing the water quality of the collector wells in the Vallipuram area of the northern Sri Lanka and to determine the suitability of the water for domestic utilization. Water samples were collected from the four water supply collector wells in both top and bottom randomly in duplicates during the dry season of 2015.Samples were analyzed for pH, electrical conductivity (EC), chloride, total alkalinity, total acidity, total dissolved solids (TDS) and total hardness. The results were compared with WHO and SLS standards. The samples obtained from the first, third and fourth collector wells do not contain any contaminants and the samples obtained from the second collector well-contained iron contaminants. The quality of the water in the collector well two is not suitable for drinking but can be used for irrigation after appropriate water treatment like chlorination. This study reveals that all the values obtained are within the permissible limit in all levels of the collector wells apart from the excessive amount of iron in the collector well 2, according to WHO standard.