Hazard assessment of microcystins from the household’s drinking water

Abstract

Cyanobacteria produce toxins which are hazardous to the health of people who are using water that is contaminated. The hazard quotient suggested by United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) was used to assess the human health hazard of using contaminated water containers. There was no statistically significant difference (P = 0.5511) in the level of microcystin between blooming and decaying seasons. Findings show that all treated water samples in the containers were below the 1.0 μg/L level, which underscore this important issue: drinking water from treated water in containers has no adverse health effect when compared to drinking water from non-treated water containers, whether used by adults or children. In conclusion, collecting and storing of either pre-treated or non-treated water using containers needs post-treatment before drinking.