Drinking Water Quality and Options for the Primary Schools of a Salinity Affected Coastal Area of Bangladesh

Abstract

Salinity intrusion caused a serious crisis for safe drinking water in the coastal areas of Bangladesh. The situation is even worse for children especially at school. However, information on water services in coastal schools are limited. Here we assess the quality of drinking water and supply infrastructures in the primary schools of a severely saline affected coastal area of Bangladesh. To fulfill the objective, thirty-eight schools were purposively selected and investigated in Dacope Upazila of Khulna district in Bangladesh. Findings revealed that, harvested rainwater (63%), pond (21%) and tube wells (16%) are the only drinking water sources. DO, pH, NO3, SO4 and PO4 concentration of the drinking water satisfied the quality standard. In contrast, total coliform counts exceeded the national standard. Harvested rainwater and pond showed more susceptibility to microbial contaminations as compared that of tube wells which have high salt content. Although 29% schools have installed portable water filtration unit, those are grossly inaccessible for the students. Therefore, students are reportedly consuming unsafe drinking water, and thus are vulnerable to water-borne diseases. The lack of resources and poorly designed infrastructure are the principal challenges of safe drinking water supply at primary schools of coastal Bangladesh.