Water pollution is an escalating environmental issue, particularly in developing nations. The Euphrates and Nadhim Al-Warar rivers in Ramadi City are heavily affected by waste from industrial, agricultural, and medical sources, resulting in significant changes to their physical, chemical, and biological characteristics. The purpose of this study is to assess the efficacy of water treatment methods by examining the physical, chemical, and biological properties of the Euphrates and Nadhim Al-Warar rivers both prior to and following treatment. Water samples were gathered from both rivers from August 2023 to January 2024. The analysis included physical parameters (turbidity, pH, electrical conductivity), chemical constituents (dissolved solids, alkalinity, hardness), and levels of microbiological contamination, utilizing established laboratory protocols such as bacterial culture and identification methods. Statistical analysis of the data was performed using the T-test with SPSS (2019). The results demonstrated significant reductions in turbidity, TDS, and TSS after treatment at both study sites (P ≤ 0.05), which points to an improvement in water clarity and a decrease in both particulate and dissolved loads. However, most other physicochemical parameters did not show significant differences between the values recorded before and after treatment. Microbial analysis indicated high levels of contamination, with E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus found in 90% of Al-Warar samples, along with Klebsiella (70%), Salmonella (40%), and Proteus (20%). Similar results were noted in the Euphrates, which also revealed the presence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Although water treatment led to improvements in certain physical characteristics, its impact on dissolved pollutants was limited. The ongoing presence of pathogenic bacteria underscores the necessity for more advanced purification techniques to guarantee safe water quality for human uses.
Kenoosh et al. (Wed,) studied this question.