Aim: The aim of the study is to evaluate the drinking water suitability of hand-dug wells and boreholes through the assessment of parasitic worms and concentrations of iron, manganese, zinc and cadmium in the Ejisu-Juaben municipality of Ashanti Region from 2012-2013. Method: Water samples were collected from three boreholes and three hand-dug wells selected randomly from each community and the water samples analyzed using various standard methods. Results: Two hand-dug wells at Ejisu and Juaben recorded iron (Fe) levels of 0.6810 and 0.3220 mg/l respectively, all boreholes and hand-dug wells had heavy metal (Fe, Mn, Zn and Cd) levels within the WHO guideline values. The mean iron concentration of boreholes and hand-dug wells across the various sampling locations was highly significant (p=0.001). In contrast, mean manganese and iron levels were not significant (p=0.507 and p=0.640 respectively). A total number of nine helminths were found out of the fifteen hand-dug wells. Six out of the nine helminths encountered were Ascaris species (66.7%), two were Hookworm (22.2%) and one was Schistosoma haematobium (11.1%) which were recorded at Ejisu, Juaben, Fumesua and Besease. A brief sanitation survey at each sampling community showed that, most hand-dug wells were sited near pit latrines, refuse dumps, septic tanks, piggeries and in the vicinity of domestic animals with a minimum distance of 5m. The difference between mean distance of boreholes and hand-dug wells to sanitary sites was statistically significant (p=0.039). Conclusion: By comparism, parasitological quality and metal concentrations of water from the selected boreholes were better than some of the selected hand-dug wells and thus must be treated before use.
Key words: Helminths, heavy metals, boreholes, hand-dug wells, parasites
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