ASSESSMENT OF PHYSICOCHEMICAL AND MICROBIAL WATER QUALITY IN TEACHING AND RESEARCH FARM WATER RESERVOIR, FUTA, NIGERIA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51459/jostir.2026.2.1.0307Keywords:
Microbial load, reservoir water, public health, fish, water qualityAbstract
Water quality and microbial analyses are critical to safeguarding public health, sustaining aquatic ecosystems and ensuring the reliability of water for domestic, agricultural, and industrial uses. This study investigated the microbial load and physicochemical parameters in two water reservoirs at the Teaching and Research Fish Farm, Federal University of Technology Akure (FUTA) for a period of five months (May to September). Microbial analysis (bacterial, coliforms, faecal bacteria, and fungi counts) and water quality parameters (pH, conductivity, temperature, and dissolved oxygen) were analysed in triplicates following APHA (1998) and Fawole and Oso (2007) methodologies. Results revealed mean total bacterial counts (1.27±1.0 × 10² CFU/mL), coliform bacteria (0.2±0.1 CFU/mL), fungal counts (1.6 × 10² SFU/mL) while faecal coliforms (0.00±00) were absent throughout the study period. Microbial counts: bacteria, coliform and faecal counts- (2.55±1.10, 0.40±0.30, 0.00±0.00 (CFU/mL) ×102) and fungi (1.60±0.40×102 SFU/mMicrobial load,L), peaked in the month of May, however, were within microbial thresholds in water reservoirs. Water quality parameters showed notable variations with mean and range values: temperature (26.64±1.29 and 25.70 – 28.50 °C), conductivity (213±9.98 and 173.60 - 258 µS/cm), pH (7.88±0.37 and 6.58 - 10.10) while 4.99±0.24 and 3.40 - 6.10 mg/L were recorded for dissolved oxygen during the study period. Thus, the findings indicate that the water quality and microbial loads in the reservoirs were within habitable ranges for aquatic organisms by Boyd (1998) and WHO (2017) permissible limits (total bacteria (100 – 500 CFU/100mL) and total fungal and faecal coliform (0 CFU/100mL)).
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