Evaluation of drinking and irrigation water quality in Njuli, Malawi

Abstract: Good water quality is very central to a country's wellbeing. Clean water is required to ensureboth the health of the population and good ecological status of the country. It is thereforeimportant to continually conduct surveys to determine the status of the water used in, forexample, households, industries and agriculture.Elevated levels of metals, sulphate, nitrate and phosphate in drinking water can lead to poorhealth through consumption and reduced harvest when the water is used in irrigation.This report aimed at examining whether the water resources available in the vicinity of Njuliquarry in Chiradzulo, Malawi, meet the requirements of drinking and irrigation water. Thestudy found that most of the studied parameters were within the recommendations set by theMalawi Bureau of Standards (MBS) and the World Health Organization (WHO). However,conductivity in some of the water samples was higher than the recommendations. Both nitrateand iron concentrations were higher than recommended at a few locations.The study cannot conclude that the water from the water sources near the Njuli quarry containharmful levels of metals, nitrate, sulfate or phosphate.