Microbiological Quality Assessment of Drinking Water in Teros Village, East Lombok District, West Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia

Although the source of drinking water is abundantly available in East Lombok District, its quality raises a public health concern. The East Lombok District, especially Teros Village at Labuhan Haji District is mainly characterized by several springs and very shallow water levels. Teros village communities regularly use water from springs or from dug wells to meet their daily needs. The springs are scattered and located in the middle of densely populated settlements. This results in the high possibility of groundwater contamination or pollution by human activities. This research primarily aims at studying the microbiological water quality of drinking water at Teros Village, and to review household water treatments methods employed by the local population and also the sanitation condition. Eight water samples were taken from six dug wells and two springs and were analyzed with measured microbiological parameters namely coliform and fecal coli. It is revealed that there is a significant degree of microbiological pollution of drinking water in this area owing to domestic wastewater and poor sanitation condition. By using purposive sampling technique, 100 respondents (Head of Family) were selected to collect qualitative data regarding local household water treatment methods. This amount based on the reason that one house with one water source is usually inhabited and used by some families so that the number of respondents is considered enough to represent the existing conditions. Field observation was conducted to find out the sanitation condition. Local residents were familiar with several household water treatments methods, although they only knew about limited physical characteristics of water improvement.