Hydrochemical appraisal of surface water from a subtropical urban river in southwestern Bangladesh using indices, GIS, and multivariate statistical analysis

Abstract

The Gorai River is a significant river in Bangladesh's southwestern region, where residents make great use of the water despite a lack of adequate and reliable information concerning water quality and pollution levels. Thus, the goal of this research was to examine the spatio-temporal variations in water quality and determine whether it was suitable for drinking, agriculture, industrial, or livestock purposes, as well as the influencing factors and potential sources of water pollution. Surface water samples were collected in wet and dry seasons from ten sampling sites, and twenty water quality parameters were evaluated. The results showed that some studied water quality parameters, e.g., temperature, electrical conductivity, alkalinity, and nitrate, exceeded the maximum allowable limit. Water quality index values exhibited that the water quality of all sampling sites was found to be poor to very poor during the wet season, while only St-4 and St-5 were found to be poor and the rest of the investigated sites were good category during the dry season. Based on sodium adsorption ratio, soluble sodium percentage, residual sodium carbonate, residual sodium bicarbonate, and permeability index values, it was depicted that river water was suitable for irrigation purposes, but when compared to Kelly's ratio (KR) and magnesium hazard ratio values, river water was found to be unfit for irrigation. Moreover, potential salinity (PS) and sodium-to-calcium activity ratio (SCAR) values allow the water as moderately suitable for use in irrigation purposes. Langelier saturation index (LSI) and aggressive index (AI) values revealed that the river water was under saturated to supersaturated and moderate to non-aggressive in nature. However, Ryznar stability index (RSI), Puckorius scaling index (PSI), and Larson-Skold index (LS) values describe whether the water was high or severely corrosive, signifying its inappropriateness for industrial consumption. Principal component analysis (PCA) analysis depicted that the fluctuations in water quality are mostly related to point and non-point contaminations, such as urban and industrial effluent discharged and agricultural runoff of fertilizers. Cluster analysis (CA) revealed relative geographical and seasonal changes in water quality, showing the impact of hydrological changes and contamination.

Keywords: Drinking suitability; Fresh water; Gorai River; Irrigation feasibility; Livestock permissibility.