Utilisation of drinking water from rainwater-harvesting cisterns in the Palestinian territories: assessment of contamination risk

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Journal Title, Volume, Page: 
Int. J. of Environment and Waste Management, 2012 Vol.9, No.3/4, pp.358 - 371
Year of Publication: 
2012
Authors: 
Abdelrahim Abusafa
Department of Chemical Engineering, An–Najah National University, Nablus, P.O. Box 7, Palestinian Territory.
Current Affiliation: 
Department of Chemical Engineering, An-Najah National University, P.O. Box 7, Nablus, Palestine
Hassan A. Arafat
Department of Chemical Engineering, Water Technologies Research Unit, An–Najah National University, Nablus, P.O. Box 7, Palestinian Territory.
Mohammad Abu-Baker
Water and Environment Studies Institute, An–Najah National University, Nablus, P.O. Box 7, Palestinian Territory.
Khalid N. Khalili
Department of Chemical Engineering, An–Najah National University, Nablus, P.O. Box 7, Palestinian Territory
Preferred Abstract (Original): 

A set of established precautions and procedures must be followed to ensure water quality in rainwater harvesting cisterns. In this study, 106 cisterns were sampled and 176 cistern owners were surveyed in the northern West Bank region. It was found that although the nitrate concentration and Total Dissolved Solids (TDSs) readings of the sampled cisterns conformed to Palestinian standards, most cisterns were found to contain fecal coliform, exceeding 8000 cfu/ml in many cases. Cistern owners responses revealed an array of malpractices, which are suspected of leading to this contamination risk. Several remedial actions were proposed to alleviate this condition.