Vulnerability of Khartoum State (Sudan) Groundwater to Contamination

Groundwater is a globally important and valuable resource for all aspects of life, human activities and development. It constitutes a major portion of the earth water circulatory system known as hydrologic cycle and occurs in permeable geologic formulations known as aquifers. It acts as a reservoir of water to that provides "buffer storage" during drought period. Vulnerability assessments may or may not account for the different behavior of different contaminants in the environment. There are two general types of vulnerability assessments, the first addresses specific vulnerability referring to specific contaminants and the second addresses intrinsic vulnerability. The overall utility of the vulnerability assessment is highly dependent on the scale at which it is conducted. The main objective of this research work is to assess vulnerability of groundwater in Khartoum State (Sudan) to contamination and to determine the extent of actual contamination. Biological, chemical, physical tests were conducted, beside filed surveys, sanitary surveillance and Drastic Index techniques were used. The study revealed that, the ground water is distributed without any treatment. Asbestos and iron pipes in the network distribution system constitute more than 18%, and the results of the bacteriological tests showed strong relationship between the contaminant source and the presence of bacteria in the water