Comparative Analysis of the Hydrochemical Characteristics of Ground Water Sources Found within the Kassena Nankana East District of the Upper East Region of Ghana

Water is an essential component of life that is impossible to do away with. Just like its numerous uses, water has a variety of sources which include those that are stored in ice caps and glaciers, surface water, and ground water. The Kassena Nankana East District is one of nine districts in the Upper East Region of Ghana and has three main potable water sources; pipe-borne, borehole and wells, with the last two being the most readily available sources especially as you move away from the central business district, where most of the commercial activities takes place. These ground water sources within the district are used for both domestic, industrial (cottage industry), agricultural, and recreational purposes. Metals do occur freely in nature either as a combination with other minerals or on their own in these water sources. In as much as they come with other minerals that are of economic importance, they cannot be left behind taking only the important one. Such metals enter our water system either by natural disturbance like when water flows over them or by man-made disturbances especially through the mining process. Because of the levels of toxicity some of these metals exhibit, this study was designed to estimate their concentrations in ground water which is used directly without treatment within the district. It was revealed that both sources were mildly acidic to mildly basic (6.84- 7.58 for wells and 6.85- 7.69 for boreholes). Concentrations of most metals were found to be low and within acceptable standards. However, there were more well samples that were very hard than borehole samples. In the exception of Cd, both sources reflected similar trends of Cu, Zn, Ni and Cr concentrations