QUALITY OF DRINKING WATER SUPPLIES IN ALMASU RURAL AREA (SALAJ COUNTY, ROMANIA)

The groundwater sources used for drinking water in rural areas (Almasu commune) are often affected by natural contamination (the presence of natural chemical compounds in the water source), or artificial pollution resulted from the use of fertilizers and pesticides (chemical contamination) and uncontrolled discharges of domestic waste (microbiological contamination). Alma u is the biggest commune of Salaj County and is located in the southern part of the Almas River Basin, in N-W of Romania. The aim of this study is to determine the quality of water from households'wellsand from the local water supply system (recently put into use) from Alma u village. This paper presents astudy regarding the quality of the water supplies used by the local population for drinking and food preparation; identification of possible contamination; the information of population regarding the quality of the drinking water and the possible risks when inappropriate water is used. The results regarding the main physico-chemical parameters (pH, redox potential, total dissolved solids, electrical conductivity and total hardness) shown that all the values are relatively low and below the maximum concentration level according the Romanian legislation. The values for salinity are between 0.20 0.80 parts per thousand. The major anions (F-, Cl-, NO2-, Br-, NO3-, PO43-, SO42-) were analyzed and the majority of water samples from wells have high levels of sulfate (values between 147-260.46 mg/l) andnitrate (values between 136.54 - 334.07 mg/l). The results show that the quality of water from the distribution system is superior to the water from wells.