The Effectiveness of Water Filtration for Household Use

Rationale

This study is all about water filtration which will be conducted in a place that is lack of

water supply. The primary reason for the conduct of this Research entitled The

Effectiveness of Water Filtration is to help a community to prevent water-related

illnesses and diseases.

The claim of this study focuses on the fact that if the water is clean, it will help to

flushed out toxins, sends nutrition around our body and aids in digestion.

(Aquaporin).

According to Flowater 2020, Water is such an essential part of our daily lives that

many times we don’t stop to consider where it’s being sourced or the quality of it. We

assume we’re receiving the best possible output. For many, tap water is deemed

undrinkable, which is where filtered water comes into play. The importance of water

filtration is that it gives people access to clean water that is free of contaminants, that

tastes good, and is a reliable source of hydration. Without it, there’s the risk of

becoming ill from contaminated water or the alternative of drinking other beverages

that may not be as good for your health as purified water. There are different types of

filtered water but all offer the basics of the water purification process. This involves

water that has been strained of harmful chemicals, pesticides, bacteria, and other

particles that contaminate the water. Although public water systems have filtration

protocols in place, these vary from state to state. It depends on where your water

supply is sourced from originally, the way it is treated, and the quality of water pipes.

For example, older water filtration systems that use lead pipes may be harmful to the

final dispersal of water because of lead leaching from the pipes into the water.

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Therefore, we gather an idea to help a community which they need a water filtration

of their water source in their area. This provoked us to conduct this study on how

effectiveness is water filtration for their household use or either for their drinking

water. It is very important to know the effectiveness of water filtration because it is an

assurance how safe we are in terms of cleanliness of water we take or use every day

in our daily lives and also with everything we do and especially with the use of water

for food that we’re going to partake. Bacteria is everywhere and it happens anytime

and it will lead us to catch food borne disease, any illness resulting from the food we

can get pathogenic bacteria, viruses, or parasites that contaminate food that can get

from the water.

CHAPTER II: OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this study are:

1. To improve the water system of the community.

2. To make water safe for drinking and household use.

3. To help a community to prevent water-related illnesses and diseases.

4. To help a certain community which need a water filtration.

CHAPTER III: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE &

THEORETICAL/CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

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Everyone, everywhere has the right to water. Unfortunately, billions of people around

the world have no access to safely managed drinking water, defined as water that is

accessible on premises, available when needed and free from contamination. In the

Philippines, around 1 in 10 people still do not have access to improved water

sources. (WHO,2019)

“Water is an extremely important resource that we cannot live without. But there are

Filipinos who are still being left behind in terms of access to improved water sources,

especially in rural communities,” said Dr Gundo Weiler, WHO Representative in the

Philippines.

In 2016, one of the top 10 leading causes of death in the Philippines was acute

watery diarrhoea, claiming over 139 000 lives. Inadequate and intermittent water

supply in Metro Manila and in other parts of the country can have serious health

consequences. When water is scarce, people are often forced to rely on drinking

water sources that may not be safe. They may also lack sufficient water for basic

hygiene - to wash themselves and their clothes, and to prevent infection including

from foodborne and waterborne diseases. Low or negative water pressure in pipes

due to short supply can attract contaminants that will put water quality at risk when

the supply is restored.

In addition, limited supply obliges people to store more water. If not handled

properly, this will provide more opportunity for mosquitoes to breed and

consequently increase the cases of mosquito-borne diseases, such as dengue fever.

“Individuals can contribute in their own ways to protect their health from the impact of

scarce water resources by conserving and recycling water, making sure the water

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they drink is safe, and covering water containers to protect against contamination

and vectors,” said Engr Bonifacio Magtibay, environmental health technical officer in

WHO Philippines.

While individual contributions are vital, governments still have the obligation to

provide safe and reliable drinking water sources to people through long-term

solutions. As it stands, too much reliance on surface water such as rivers and lakes

as well as groundwater will not be sustainable in the future due to the climate reality

and increasing water demand from the population. “Strategies such as the

application of improved rainwater collection systems and state-of the-art desalination

technologies coupled with renewable energies can be used in the Philippines,”

explained Engr Magtibay. “By adopting innovative and long-term solutions, the

Philippines can ensure water for all that will protect the peoples’ health and help

drive sustainable development forward.” The World Health Organization is working

with the Philippines Department of Health and other sector agencies to ensure safe

water for all through the development and implementation of water safety planning,

strengthening systems and capacity for drinking-water quality surveillance and

monitoring, and improvement of water, sanitation, and hygiene in health care

facilities. (WHO, 2019)

Water filtration is the process of removing or reducing the concentration of

particulate matter, including suspended particles, parasites, bacteria, algae, viruses,

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and fungi, as well as other undesirable chemical and biological contaminants from

contaminated water to produce safe and clean water for a specific purpose, such as

drinking, medical, and pharmaceutical applications. The filtration systems for drinking

water usually incorporate a five-stage filtration process: sediment, mechanical,

chemical, mineral, and bacterial. The use of home water filtration and treatment has

existed for many years in the U.S., where tap water has been assumed to be

microbiologically safe to drink. Most people have used filters when they have had a

problem with high sediment in the water or unpleasant tastes or odors that rendered

the water undrinkable. More recently, however, people are relying on these devices

as well as more sophisticated technologies to protect their health. (N. Mao, 2016)

SCHEMATIC DIAGRAM

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According to Cristina Tuser 2021, Water purification takes place on small and large

scales, and water filtering can provide clean and potable water for industrial

applications, in addition to individual households. 

The Philippines is one country with many communities in need of clean water.

According to UNICEF, the number of Filipinos with no access to safe drinking water

is approximately 17 million.iv Over 15% of the rural communities in the Philippines

do not have access to potable water due to limited income. (S. Gallardo 2010)

Filtration is the process of removing undesirable chemicals, biological contaminants,

suspended solids from contaminated water, so as to produce safe and clean drinking

water. Filtration methods include reverse osmosis filtration, slow sand filtration,

activated carbon filtration, ceramic filtration, membrane filtration, cloth filtration, rapid

sand filtration and household sand filtration. Boiling and cloth filtration of water is

often recommended by health workers to communities where pipeborne water does

not exist. In most of the hinterlands in Ghana, wells, dams, lakes, boreholes,

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rainwater, rivers and streams are the main sources of drinking water. Some of these

water sources are not clean, others have various types of odour. Some of the

surface water types collect debris and excreta from surface run-off rain water which

leads to contamination, and subsequently cause waterborne diseases. (Water

Quality Research Journal (2016)