Physicochemical and Bacteriological Study of Hawked Water in Bauchi Local Government, Bauchi

Hawked water usually in a sachet or plastic bottle is considered safe and ready to be taken immediately after purchase. However, not all hawked water in Nigeria can be regarded as safe because not all water manufacturing industries follow the required standard and in most cases scuttle the need to maintain standards due to tax-related issues and sometimes greed. This study presents a systematic assessment of the bacteriological and physicochemical attributes of hawked sachet water collected from five distinct locations within Bauchi Local Government area of Bauchi state, Nigeria. The research was conducted meticulously in a controlled environment to ensure the reliability of the findings. The study sought to determine the levels of physicochemical (pH, hardness, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, total solid, electrical conductivity, nitrogen, chloride, temperature and turbidity) and bacteriological analysis (serial dilution, multiple tube fermentation, total plate count and confirmatory and completed test) of five replicate samples using standard microbiology techniques. The results were compared to World Health Organization (WHO) drinking water quality guidelines. A greater percentage of analyses for physicochemical parameters were below acceptable limits except for the pH value which falls within acceptable limits. The bacteriological analysis showed there is a higher bacterial load in Area C compared to the other five locations while under microscopy, gram-negative rods were observed and recorded under x40 and x100 objective. It can be inferred from the research that certain hawked water within Bauchi, Bauchi state, Nigeria can be considered unsafe because it possesses health risks to consumers and is unsuitable for direct human consumption without proper treatment. The study recommends strict enforcement of laws governing treatment water to protect the people of Bauchi state and other affected locations from further consequences of drinking untreated hawked water.