The presence of heavy metals in drinking water is of public health significance because of their toxicity at even low concentrations. Water should also be free of microorganisms.The quality of drinking water from tap, rain,river and bottled water within Utagba-Uno, a rural community in Ndokwa, Delta State was evaluated by determining the minerals, heavy metals and microbial compositions. The nine water samples analyzed included three bottled water samples (BW),tap water sample (TW), rain water sample (RW) and four river water samples (RS).The heavy metal concentrations from < 0.001 –0.21 mg/l were below the maximum acceptable concentration (MAC) of 0.5 – 50 mg/l.The calcium and sodium levels from < 0.001 – 0.35 mg/l and < 0.001 – 0.14 mg/l, respectively were below the MAC of 200 mg/l. The magnesium levels for most of the water samples were higher than the MAC of 0.1 mg/l.Escherichia coli was the most prevalent organism with percentage prevalence of 46.6% while Staphylococcus aureus was the least prevalent organism with percentage prevalence of 1.4%. Government should provide quality drinking water in Utagba-Uno. Sources of bottled water should be known and the mineral contents determined before consumption.

 

Key words: Composition, drinking water, heavy metals, microbial, minerals, Utagba-Uno.