Water Management and Treatment Practices in the Akparé District Plateau Region of Togo

Abstract

Water points far from homes, unsafe water, pumps broken due to lack of maintenance this is the daily life of many communities in developing countries. Even though water is a limited resource, it is still essential for life, development, and sustained environment. Ideally, measures should be put in place to keep this heritage healthy. This paper is devoted to Water management and treatment practices in two neighbouring villages of Akparé district in the Plateau region in Togo. Household surveys and water sampling for physicochemical and microbiological characterization were performed. These villages are supplied with surface water, traditional wells, and water from the castle. The investigation shows that the choice of source supplied depends on season and water availability. The results of characterization of the samples using the standard method revealed a high nitrate content (>50 mg/L) in the castle’s water, organic matter (> 2.0 mg/L), especially in surface water. This could be explained by uncontrolled anthropogenic activities near these springs’ waters. All the samples are contaminated with microbiological germs probably due to bad waste management, agriculture, and breeding. The consumption of these waters can explain the high rate of prevalence in diseases such as cholera, stomach aches, and intestinal worm diseases. Despite this situation, only a minority adopt measures such as traditional treatment (filtration using white cloth, use of Alum and ash, decantation, boiling and sometimes chlorination) to improve the quality of the water before it uses. However, these traditional treatments are not effective to protect consumers who are then subject to water-borne diseases.