Testing the water in Nigeria

Regular water testing is vital as groundwater quality can change over time.

Credit: WaterAid / Suzanne Porter

When working on community water supply projects it is vital to keep an eye on water quality and identify any microbiological contamination or toxins that may pose a threat to public health.

However, undertaking wide scale water quality monitoring to keep the risk of contamination in check can be expensive and logistically difficult.

In Nigeria, WaterAid is helping to develop the skills of local governments and regional water boards to carry out water quality testing in their areas.

The quality of groundwater can change over time for a number of reasons including sustained pumping, changes in land use and contamination by human waste. Surface water supplies are far more susceptible to changes in quality.

While some inorganic chemical pollutants can be measured in the field using cheap hand-held equipment, other contaminants can only be tested in laboratories using costly equipment.

In many countries where WaterAid works, sophisticated and delicate equipment may not be locally available and it can take time to replace broken components and reagents which need to be ordered from other countries.

In Nigeria WaterAid has seen that the ability of local governments and water boards to test for drinking water quality has been limited by the availability of suitable equipment and the absence of a sector wide standard that all testing bodies must adhere to.

In the past, the World Health Organization Drinking Water Quality Guidelines have loosely formed the basis for testing but it has been difficult to measure the full range of parameters because of equipment shortages and the absence of a sector wide standard.

This situation is changing however. WaterAid now plans to develop the skills of local authorities and water boards so that they are able to carry out effective water quality monitoring in the areas where they work.

Mathew Ocholi, WaterAid's Coordinator for Benue State, says "State level water quality surveillance teams will be set up and trained to carry out sampling and testing. WaterAid partners are encouraged to document baseline water quality information for every water point they help communities to construct."

Samples taken from new water points will be tested in government laboratories to ensure ownership of the results which will then be used as a benchmark for monitoring the subsequent water quality situation by government monitoring teams.

WaterAid plans to carry out a comprehensive water quality mapping exercise that will involve testing of representative samples from water points constructed over the last ten years.

These digital maps and the related data will feed into Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) programs in the region, informing decision makers on the best way to deliver sustainable water supplies to communities.

Read more on water quality testing.