Microbial Load of Domestic Water Sources Treated with Moringa oleifera and Jatropha curcas Seed Powder

Aim: Microbial load of domestic water sources treated with Moringa oleifera and Jatropha curcas seed powder.

Study Design: The container test method was used for the treatments. One gram (1.0 g) each of the plant seed (Moringa oleifera and Jatropha curcas seeds) powder was weighed and added separately into 1000 ml of water sample. The mixture was stirred rapidly for 3 minutes and allowed to stand undisturbed for 1 hour and 3 hours, after which the top water was decanted.

Place and Duration of Study: Advanced Research Laboratory, Department of Microbiology, Gregory University Uturu, from May to September 2017.

Methodology: Tenfold serial dilutions were used for processing of the domestic water samples, after which 0.5 ml of the water sample was cultured on the media using the spread plate method. This was incubated appropriately and other standard microbiological methods were employed to determine microbial loads and characterize the isolates.

Results: The microbial counts were generally high, 0.6×101 – 2.5×102 cfu/ml (borehole), 0.8×101 – 6.3×103 cfu/ml (well), 2.0×101 – 1.4×104 cfu/ml (stream), while the total potential pathogenic bacteria counts (TPPBC) were the least in occurrence. Treatment with Moringa oleifera and Jatropha curcas seed powders showed a significant decrease in the microbial load. After treatment with 1.0g of the seed powder for one hour, an apparent decrease in the microbial load was noticed. When allowed for three hours (3 hrs), the counts further reduced to no growth for potential pathogenic bacteria (TPPBC) especially for water samples that had low counts.

Conclusion: Moringa and Jatropha seeds powder showed efficiency as a biocoagulant and thus can be used for water treatment. Moringa seed powder had a greater potential to serve as an alternative coagulant for water treatment. The intervention improved the quality of water and will provide significant benefits to the health of the consumer rural populace.