ISLAMABAD: A research carried out by Pakistan Council for Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) on Tuesday stated eight brands of bottled water unsafe for human consumption, reported a local media house.
The PCRWR results are publicised after quarterly reviewing the quality of bottled/mineral water brands.
According to the quarterly report from January to March, 110 samples of mineral/bottled water brands were collected from various cities which included; Islamabad, Peshawar, Multan, Lahore, Bahawalpur, Tandojam, Quetta and Karachi.
The results were further compared with the permissible limits of Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) that revealed the eight brands –Edlen Premium, Aqua Fine, Pure Aqua, Livon, Zam, Aqua Gold, Pure 18, and Aab-e-Noor –were unsafe for consumption due to chemical and microbiological contamination.
Out of those unsafe brands, Aqua Fine has high levels of arsenic with 20 parts per billion (ppb) against 10 ppb permissible under the PSQCA water quality standard.
The four brands, Zam, Aqua Gold, Pure 18 and Aab-e-Noor, were found to be unsafe due to microbiological contamination which may cause diseases like cholera, hepatitis, typhoid, etc.
Moreover, brands like Edlen Premium, Pure Aqua and Livon were found unsafe under the PSQCA water quality standard, due to the presence of higher levels of sodium ranging from 57-60 parts per million (ppm) against 50 ppm.
PCRWR stated that the poor quality of potable water had forced a large section of citizens to buy bottled water, which resulted in the mushroom growth of bottled water industry in the last few years.
However, many of the mineral/bottled water companies have been found selling contaminated water.
