Abstract

CHAN SANTISTEBAN, Milton Leonel  and  PENA, Wagner. Evaluación de la calidad del agua superficial con potencial para consumo humano en la cuenca alta del Sis Icán, Guatemala. Cuadernos de Investigación UNED [online]. 2015, vol.7, n.1, pp.19-23. ISSN 1659-4266.

In Guatemala 90 % of urban water has a rural origin and 70% of the sources are superficial. We selected three rivers of the upper basin of Sis Icán (Chita, and Sacobá Ixconá-Sis; Pacific coast) to asses drinking water. The watersheds have agriculture and livestock farms, as well as urban and rural populations. Water quality was assessed in the origin and end of each river, in 2012. The variables measured were: NO3, NO2 =, SO4 =, Fe, Cl, Mn, hardness, total coliforms and fecal coli-forms. We applied the water pollution index, which is the average of the ratios between observed parameters and regulated standard val ues. We found statistically significant inputs for chemical and microbiological contaminants (total and fecal coliforms). The level of chemical contaminants does not compromise the quality of water for human consumption, but the biological contamination does.

Keywords : Chemical pollution index; microbiological pollution; drink-ing water; Sis Ican; basin; quality water; Guatemala.

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