Investigating the Drinking Water Quality and Associated Health Risks in Metropolis Area of Pakistan

Abstract

Water is the basic need of human beings with no substitute for it. This research aims to investigate the drinking water quality and dissociated risk calculations of the metropolis area in Pakistan. The present study was based on public awareness toward water quality and the real situation of water quality of filtration plants in Islamabad. A questionnaire was designed with the help of existing literature about public awareness on water quality. In the present study, 450 completed questionnaires were collected and analyzed with the help of statistical tools. To investigate the real situation of water quality in the study area, 32 samples were analyzed from installed filtration plants. The results presented that electrical arsenic, conductivity (EC), and alkalinity were higher, and 26 samples were found to be unsafe for drinking under poor water quality (water quality index >100). The hazard index of arsenic was found to be <1 in adults (7.03E+01) and children (1.06E+02) in Islamabad. The microbiological situation was included as well for health risk assessment. There is a need of comprehensive management for the sustainability of filtration plants. Public satisfaction can be enhanced by dissemination of the significant importance of water quality in annual government reports to the public via local social media, print media, and television.