Evaluación de la calidad de agua para consumo humano en la Universidad de Cuenca

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to review the quality of drinking water consumed at the University of Cuenca, both from storage cisterns and from water supplied directly through the public network. There are 12 reserve units distributed in the central campus, eco-campus, historic center campus, campus paraíso and campus yanuncay, most of which are not supplying the different buildings. Water quality was evaluated through a descriptive and quantitative observational study with four monitoring campaigns for each campus, using physical, chemical and microbiological control parameters stipulated in the INEN 1108 (2020) reference standard. It is concluded that the quality of the water in all the cisterns does not meet the reference standard, at least in one of the requirements: physical, chemical or microbiological; therefore the water is not suitable for human consumption, requiring immediate actions so that the University has safe reservoirs that guarantee the different uses of the resource and can face situations of water shortage; while the evaluation of the physical-chemical and microbiological quality of the water supplied directly by the public network, meets the reference standard in all campuses. The study includes a research component and is the identification of Pseudomona aeruginosa, a pathogenic bacterium that develops in water reservoirs in objectionable storage conditions, putting the health of consumers at risk; the presence of this bacterium was detected in all cisterns. It is recommended that control agencies include the search for this bacterium as a quality indicator, since even when treated water is shown to be free of fecal coliforms, its potability cannot be assured.