Assessment of the Sverdlovsk Oblast Drinking Water Pollution with Heavy Metal

Abstract

The paper presents the results of the determination of heavy metals in drinking water samples from centralized water supply systems and wells of individual water supply of the Sverdlovsk region. It was found that the content of copper ions in the samples does not exceed its maximum permissible concentration, and the content of lead and cadmium ions in most samples is higher than the permissible norms. It is established that water samples from Nizhny Tagil and Serov are more contaminated with cadmium. The causes of drinking water pollution are discussed. It was found that the pollution of water from the centralized water supply systems with heavy metals is mainly due to the non-compliance of the operated water pipes with sanitary and hygienic requirements. Groundwater pollution is caused by the infiltration of industrial effluents containing heavy metals from storage and sedimentation tanks through soil. It is shown that numerous industrial enterprises in the Sverdlovsk region aggravate the process of pollution of surface and groundwater with heavy metals. The unsatisfactory quality of water in terms of the content of heavy metals in Sverdlovsk region is revealed. The authors dwell on the need to continue research to determine the content of other heavy metals in water and expand the geography of sampling in the region in order to assess more accurately the quality of water.