Assessment of Drinking Water Supply, Sanitation Practices, and Water Quality in the Afeumey Peri‐Urban Watershed, Cameroon

This study assessed the drinking water supply, sanitation practices, and water quality in the peri-urban area of the Afeumey watershed, Cameroon, with the aim of identifying the main factors influencing water quality and their implications for human health. A mixed methodological approach combining household surveys and field sampling was employed. Thirteen water samples were collected from wells, springs, boreholes, and rivers during a hydrological period and analyzed for physicochemical, hydrochemical, and bacteriological parameters, including pH, TDS, EC, TSS, major ions, BOD₅, COD, fecal coliform, and fecal streptococci. The survey data revealed that 77% of the population relies on groundwater sources, mainly wells (34%), springs (24%), and boreholes (19%), whereas only 15% of residents are served by the CAMWATER distribution network. Sanitation systems are predominantly individual, with 54% of households using semimodern latrines and 65% of solid waste being disposed of in open or unregulated sites. These practices, coupled with high population density and insufficient drainage systems, exacerbate the risks of contamination of surface and groundwater resources. Hydrochemical analyses indicate that water in the Afeumey watershed is generally acidic (pH 3.34-6.13) and characterized by variable mineralization, with EC ranging from 39.5 to 668 μS/cm and TDS from 28 to 467 mg/L. The ionic composition follows the order Ca²⁺ > Mg²⁺ > Na⁺ > K⁺ and NO₃ ^- > HCO₃ ^- > Cl^- > SO₄ ^2-, reflecting both natural mineral dissolution and anthropogenic inputs. Elevated concentrations of total suspended solids, nitrate, ammonium, and bacterial indicators surpass WHO and ANOR standards for drinking water, suggesting strong domestic and agricultural influence. Principal component analysis (PCA) identifies two main components explaining 69.34% of the total variance, linking physicochemical variability to both geogenic and anthropogenic origins. The overall findings highlight deteriorating groundwater quality driven by poor sanitation infrastructure and unmanaged solid waste. The study underscores the urgent need for integrated water resource management, improved sanitation systems, regular water quality monitoring, and community education to ensure safe water access and sustainable environmental protection in peri-urban watersheds of Cameroon.