Abstract
Samples collected from hand-dug shallow water wells in Awka metropolis during the dry and wet seasons were subjected to mycological analysis to determine their safety for use. The fungal counts during the dry and wet seasons were 3.5x10 3 cfu/ml-8.2x10 3 cfu/ml and 5.1x10 3 cfu/ml-10.6x10 3 cfu/ml respectively. The fungi isolated during the dry and wet seasons respectively were Candida albicans (42.0% and 44.8%), Cryptococcus neoformans (9.6% and 10.2%), Rhodotorula Harrison (11.5% and 12.6%), Microsporium canis (0.0% and 0.2%), Penicillium chrysogenum (28.0% and 29.3%), Alternaria alternata (0.0% and 0.3%), Mucor mucedo (8.9% and 9.2%) and Sepedonium chrysospermum (0.0% and 0.2%). Candida albicans, Cryptococcus neoformans, Rhodotorula harrison, Penicillium chrysogenum and Mucor mucedo were isolated from 46.7%, 6.7%, 20.0%, 26.7% and 6.7% of the samples respectively during the dry season while 60.0%, 20.0%, 26.7%, 6.7%, 40.0%, 13.3%, 20.0% and 6.7% of the samples respectively had Candida albicans, Cryptococcus neoformans, Rhodotorula harrison, Microsporium canis, Penicillium chrysogenum, Alternaria alternata, Mucor mucedo and Sepedonium chrysospermum. These fungi are human pathogens which are known to cause diseases of animals and humans which if untreated may lead to fatal consequences, therefore adequate treatment of the water will safeguard the health of the users.
Highlights
Ground water is an increasingly important resource all over the world
The number of the hand-dug shallow water wells with the fungal isolates during the dry and wet season is presented in Table 4. 46.7%, 6.7%, 20.0%, 26.7% and 6.7% of the water wells contained Candida albicans, Cryptococcus neoformans, Rhodotorula harrison, Penicillium chrysogenum and Mucor mucedo respectively during the dry season while 60.0%, 20.0%, 26.7%, 6.7%, 40.0%, 13.3%, 20.0% and 6.7% of the water wells contained Candida albicans, Cryptococcus neoformans, Rhodotorula harrison, Microsporium canis, Penicillium chrysogenum, Alternaria alternata, Mucor mucedo and Sepedonium chrysospermum respectively during the wet season
The result of the analysis of the samples from the hand-dug shallow water wells during the dry and wet seasons showed that they were contaminated with fungi (Table 1)
Summary
It is the subsurface water that occurs beneath the water table in soils and geological formations that are fully saturated. It supports drinking water supplies, livestock needs, irrigation, industrial and many commercial activities. Ground water can be contaminated by naturally occurring sources. Soil and geological formation containing high levels of heavy metals can leach those metals into ground water. This can be aggravated by over pumping wells, for agriculture [2]. The quality of ground water is a function of natural processes as well as anthropogenic activities [3]
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