QUALITY OF THE RAINWATER STORED IN RURAL CISTERNS IN SEMIARID OF BAHIA, BRAZIL

Abstract

The scarcity of drinking water for human consumption is one of the main problems for the quality of life of the rural population in semiarid regions. In this sense, the “One Million Cisterns” Program presents itself as an alternative for living with that region. The present study aimed to evaluate chemical, physical-chemical and microbiological parameters of rainwater collected in different cisterns in the Bahia municipalities of Retirolândia, Serrinha and Tanquinho, in order to assess the quality of the water that has been consumed by these populations. The presence of total coliforms was observed in 100% of the analyzed samples and Escherichia coli in 62.9%. In addition, 20% of the samples had high levels of aluminum and 8.6% had pH values ​​outside the range recommended by Ordinance MS 888/2021, while other parameters were in accordance with that ordinance. The work emphasizes the importance of capturing and storing rainwater in cisterns as a solution for supplying water for human consumption in regions with extreme scarcity. However, it warns of the importance of ensuring adequate conditions for the storage and maintenance of the quality of the water to be consumed by the families covered by the program.