Abstract In the lack of the dissemination of drinking water networks, rural populations in Morocco tend to use archaic methods by using the nearest resources of waters, namely traditional water tanks directly fed by rainwater used as only sources of water for various uses (consumption, watering etc.) without any quality controlling. Our work is carried out as part of assessing, diagnosing and monitoring the physicochemical and bacteriological water quality of the five traditional tanks, which are exploited by rural populations of Morocco. The physico-chemical analysis has shown that these reservoirs (tanks) studied respect the recommended Moroccan standards, except for orthophosphate and chloride, which contain high levels. In addition, all studied reservoirs show a high bacteriological pollution (145, 5.103CFU/100ml) and exceed the standards of water intended for human consumption. These microbial loads may constitute a significant health risk to the consumer.
Keywords Microbial quality, stored rainwater, traditional tank, rural area.