Abstract
Water is a vital medium for biological reactions in plants and animals. The quality of water, which can be determined through monitoring the chemical, physical, and biological properties, affects its safety during use in various life-sustaining processes. The purpose of this experiment was to analyze water from a wetland for phosphate, nitrite, and bacterial content. Water samples measuring 100 each were obtained from four different points in a park bordering a river on three separate days. The samples were subjected to physicochemical analysis by measuring temperature and pH using a conductivity and temperature tester. The concentrations of chlorine, nitrite, and phosphate were estimated using a portable photometer. The lowest and highest temperatures were 17oC and 24.5oC, whereas the average pH was 8.5. The concentration of nitrite was lower than the maximum allowable limits in drinking water. Bacterial populations ranged from 2.69×104 to 4.82×104 cells. Phosphate was the major chemical contaminant in the wetland. It was recommended that nanoparticle filters should be used to purify the water.
Introduction
Water is a vital component that is needed in large quantities to sustain life. Water quality is a term that denotes the chemical, physical, and biological attributes of water. The quality of water varies based on the type of organism, human requirements, or purpose. A number of parameters can alter the condition of water in the surroundings, including chemical, physical, or biological factors. Physical characteristics of water quality consist of temperature and turbidity. Conversely, chemical features include factors such as pH, dissolved gases, and ions. Physiological reactions take place with a given temperature range, which means that water temperature should also be conducive for organisms that live in it. Important ions to consider in water quality include nitrite, chloride, and phosphate.
Nitrites are salts derived from nitrous acid that can be found naturally in groundwater. However, these ions can also be introduced into water bodies from nitrogenous fertilizers via sewage, run-off water, or mineral deposits. The predominant bacteria found in wetlands are cyanobacteria, which develop symbiotic associations with plants due to their ability to fix nitrogen into utilizable forms. Nitrifying bacteria obtain energy from the oxidation of organic nitrogenous compounds. Nitrite ions can trigger the growth of bacteria if present in large quantities in water bodies.
Phosphates are oxides of phosphorous that are important in water quality evaluation. The normal concentration of phosphates in water should be approximately 0.02 parts per million (Abu-Hmeidan, Williams & Miller 2018). Even though all plants require phosphates for healthy growth and development, high concentrations of this anion reduce the levels of oxygen and result in cloudy water.
Chlorides are salts formed when chlorine gas combines with metals. The most common chloride salts are sodium chloride and magnesium chloride. Chlorides can be introduced to groundwater from sources such as agricultural runoff, rocks containing chlorides, as well as effluents from wastewater treatment plants and other industries. Small quantities of chlorides are important for the normal functioning of cells. Nonetheless, high levels of chlorides have adverse effects such as corrosion of metals and death or aquatic life (Manahan 2017). These ions also lead to the corrosion of metals in industrial applications. Therefore, the levels of chloride ions in water need to be kept at a recommended maximum limit to avoid these effects. The purpose of this experiment is to analyze the quality of water from a wetland with a specific focus on nitrite, phosphate and bacterial content.
Materials and Methods
Study Site
The study site was a park bordering a river with native bacteria.
Sampling Device
Temperature and pH parameters of the water samples were measured using a conductivity and temperature tester/ EC-PCTestr35 model. However, chemical parameters such as chlorine, nitrite, and phosphate were determined using a portable Winlab® data line photometer. A quantitative approach was used to determine the range of the substances being investigated.
Sample Collection
Water samples were collected on three different days from four various locations in the same park. The specific sample collection dates were 04/9/19, 04/14/19, and 05/7/19. Each sample had a volume of 100 mL.
Cytometry Device for Bacteria in Water
Flow cytometry was used to enumerate the bacteria due to its speed and accuracy. Samples were prepared for flow cytometry bacterial enumeration by adding 25 µL of water to 224 µL of 0.2 µm filtered TE buffer. Thereafter, 10 µL of SYTO Orange working stock solution was added to each portion.
Results
The concentrations of nitrite and phosphate ions in the water samples on different days are indicated in Table 1. The lowest and highest temperatures were recorded on the 7th of May and 14th of April, respectively. The overall pH of water was approximately 8.5 (the lowest pH was 8.23 and the highest was 8.91). In contrast, the lowest concentration of phosphates was less than 0.03 mg/L (30 µg/L). The highest concentration of phosphate ions that was recorded was 0.555 mg/L, which was equivalent to 555 µg/L. Nitrite concentrations were less than 0.010 mg/L on most days except in sample D on the 14th of April. Figures from 1 to 4 show the flow cytometry data for bacteria population for the four different samples. The numbers of live bacterial cells were 2.69×104, 2.21×104, 3.33×104, and 4.82×104 for samples A, B, C, and D.
Table 1: A summary of the temperatures, pH, and concentrations of chloride, nitrite, and phosphate in water samples.
Discussion
The results in Table 1 showed that water temperatures ranged from 17.0oC to 24.5oC throughout the sampling period. Water temperature plays a vital role in the biological activity and metabolism of aquatic life. For instance, aquatic plants thrive in warm temperatures, whereas fishes such as salmons flourish in colder temperatures. Aquatic bacterial populations are also determined by temperature. The recorded temperature values showed that psychrophiles and mesophiles (to a lesser extent) were likely to bloom under these conditions (Xia et al. 2018). Water temperature is affected by factors such as thermal pollution and heat transfer from the air, other water sources, and sunlight. Consequently, the observed temperatures eliminate any possibility of thermal pollution. Temperature should be checked when assessing water quality because it alters other factors that can influence its physicochemical attributes. For example, water temperature affects the concentrations of dissolved oxygen, salinity, conductivity, oxidation-reduction potential, pH, and density.
The hardness, softness, and corrosiveness of water are often determined by the pH of water. Pure water is expected to have a pH of 7. However, this value often ranges from 6.5 to 8.5 in many water systems (Jena & Sinha 2017). Nonetheless, pH levels as high as 8.9 were also recorded. This observation indicated that the water was relatively safe for consumption regarding this parameter. A number of studies suggest that drinking alkaline water has health benefits such as reducing the viscosity of blood, improving blood pressure, reducing cholesterol levels, and lowering gastrointestinal acid levels, thereby alleviating acid reflux. Other alleged benefits of alkaline water include colon cleansing capabilities, boosting the immune system, providing antioxidants that fight aging, enhancing skin health, and contributing to weight loss (Passey 2017; Zalvan et al. 2017).
The lowest number of live bacteria was 2.21×104 in sample B, whereas the highest count was 4.82×104 in sample D. The concentration of phosphates was generally high given that the lowest value recorded was 0.03 mg/L (30 µg/L). Phosphate ions support the excessive growth of algae, which, in turn, outcompete other organisms in water by secreting harmful toxins. It has also been demonstrated that phosphate concentrations of up to 10 µg/L (0.01 mg/L) of water increase microbial growth in drinking water (Manahan 2017). This observation accounted for the large numbers of bacterial cells that were recorded because high phosphate concentrations encourage microbial growth. Nitrite levels were less than 0.010 mg/L, which was below the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency maximum contaminant limit of 1.0 mg/L (Atekwana & Geyer 2018). Therefore, the high population of bacteria in the water could be attributed mainly to elevated phosphate levels. Nitrites are toxic to human health, particularly in infants. Studies show that nitrites interfere with the delivery of oxygen to tissues through the formation of methemoglobin instead of oxygenated hemoglobin (Ráduly & Farkas 2017). Consequently, the analyzed water could be considered safe regarding its nitrite concentrations.
It has been shown that phosphorous is the most important inorganic element that influences the growth of microbes in water (Abu-Hmeidan, Williams & Miller 2018). This observation provides new possibilities of limiting microbial growth in water by advancing technologies to get rid of phosphorous, particularly for drinking purposes. A promising technique is the use of nanoparticles as filters to control water contamination and bacterial populations. This approach can be applied as a point-of-use method. Its efficacy has been demonstrated in the inactivation of coliform bacteria in polluted water sources. Nanoparticle paper filters containing copper or silver nanoparticles have been used successfully to lower E. coli and total coliforms in untreated wastewater (Morsi et al. 2017). Such an approach can be used to improve the quality of water in this experiment.
Given its biological requirements, water should be free from contaminating microorganisms and chemical substances because poor quality water can have deleterious effects on living organisms and the surrounding ecosystem. Biological pointers of water quality include such organisms as bacteria, algae, and phytoplankton. All these components need to be maintained within specified levels in water meant for different purposes as stipulated by water quality guidelines and regulations. Failing to adhere to these standards may lead to waterborne diseases and other health complications, which increases healthcare spending and lowers the work potential of a society. Consequently, water quality testing is a useful practice in ensuring the safety of all organisms that depend on a source of water for their survival.
Conclusion
The quality of water should be ascertained before using it for domestic or industrial applications. Furthermore, the health of an ecosystem can be monitored through water quality assessments to ensure the safety of aquatic life. In this experiment, phosphate was the major pollutant that contributed to high bacterial growth. It is recommended that nanoparticle filters should be used to purify the water to make it safe for consumption.
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