Bacteriological quality of water in marginalized areas of Ciudad Juárez which lack proper potable water supply

Abstract

In Juárez City 12% of the population do not count with an appropriate water provision, being the supplying with pipes or directly of the well without disinfecting the main and only means. It is by that to determine the bacteriological quality of the water is of vital importance for public health, especially in the marginalized zones of the city. This study was conducted in two different sites, the east side (Loma Blanca, San Isidro, San Agustin and Jesus Carranza) and the west side (Lomas de Poleo, Siglo XXI and Granjas Unidas). The determination of total and fecal coliform where made by two techniques, Multiple Tube Fermentation (MTF) and Autoanalysis Colilert (AC). In both cases the results were evaluated and compared with the standard Most Probable Number (NMP/100 ml). Of the 145 samples obtained throughout the project, there was presence of total coliform in 68.96% whereas for the fecal coliform only in 20.68%, being the locality of Siglo XXI the one that has higher pollution and San Agustín was the lower. Considering the previous results and the maximum permissible levels established by the NOM-127-SSA-1994, it was concluded that in the places of studies they were not within the established by the norm, since in most of the year they were seen outside the allowed range. It was also observed that the Colilert self-analysis technique is a rapid technique comparable to the Multiple Tube Fermentation technique to determine water quality in a shorter time.