TITLE:
Sanitation Mapping of Groundwater Contamination in a Rural Village of India
AUTHORS:
P. U. Megha, P. Kavya, S. Murugan, P. S. Harikumar
KEYWORDS:
Geographic Information Systems, Sanitation, Groundwater, Latrines, Microbial Count
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Environmental Protection,
Vol.6 No.1,
January
15,
2015
ABSTRACT: Availability
of clean water and adequate sanitation facilities are of prime importance for limiting
diarrheal diseases. We examined the spatial information on the groundwater quality
and sanitation facilities of a village in southern India using Geographic Information
System (GIS) tools. Place of residence, position of wells and latrines were mapped
and well water samples were tested for microbial contamination (Total Coliform Counts
(TCC), Fecal Coliform Counts (FCC) and Fecal Streptococcal Counts (FSC)). A well
structured questionnaire was administered to 50 residents of the selected areas
to elicit information on water collection, handling and storage. The location and
distances of wells from latrines were determined using the Global Positioning System
(GPS) device and a tape rule respectively. Data on 170 cases of various water-borne
diseases were collected from primary health centers in the study area. Groundwater
in the village was found to be microbiologically unfit for consumption. Analysis
using direct observations supplemented by GIS maps revealed poor planning, design
of the wells and improper siting of wells from latrines which were found to be the
possible reasons of groundwater contamination. There was a significant difference
in TCC between covered and uncovered wells (p p