Current World Environment

Requisite reference facts about essential elements in treated and plastic bottled drinking water is usually mentioned on the products. However, more information is sometime crucial regarding trace elements in treated, bottled and other sources of drinking water such as tap water to evaluate their quality. This study is aimed to evaluate drinking water quality in the main governorates (Jazan, Sabya and Abu Arish) of Jazan province located in the South-Western region of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This is the first such study carried out in Jazan city so that the research team can come out with valuable recommendations in the issue. The research team has collected a sum of 68 water samples from different sources comprising hospitals (treated tap water), stations for drinking water treatment (large blue bottles of drinking water) and bottled drinking water (purchased from local markets). Using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), the concentrations of 20 elements were determined. The physiochemical parameters of water samples were measured. All parameters were within the recommended limits of the World Health Organization (WHO, 2011) and Gulf Cooperation Council Standardization Organization (GSO, 2008). Trace and major elements were found to be below the standard guideline values , except for uranium in some tap water samples. This preliminary study will significantly improve the awareness and knowledge among the society about the drinking water quality in Jazan area.