Strategies to reduce microbial and chemical contamination in waste water irrigated vegetables in Nairobi, Kenya.

Abstract

The use of wastewater in urban agriculture is continually increasing due to lack of clean water for irrigation and this has made contamination of produce to be witnessed in many countries. The study was on evaluation of irrigation methods as strategies used in reducing microbial contamination in leafy vegetables. The key objectives of the study were to assess the irrigation water quality and evaluate selected irrigation methods in reducing microbial contamination in irrigated spinach vegetable. A purposive survey was first conducted in the study area to understand about the farming in the area. Water quality was determined by collecting water samples from selected sampling points and analyzed in the laboratory, while irrigated vegetable were samples by picking mature leaves and taken to the laboratory for biological analysis. Physico-chemical characteristic was determined using the stated laboratory procedures while TTCs and helminthes eggs in water and vegetable samples were analyzed using the standard most probable number method and floatation-sedimentation method respectively. Then data was then subjected SPSS and Genstat statistical tools for analysis.