Shallow Groundwater Quality Assessment and Its Suitability Analysis for Drinking and Irrigation Purposes

• Published in: Water
• Main Authors: Muhammad Yousuf Jat Baloch, Wenjing Zhang, Juanfen Chai, Shuxin Li, Muwaffaq Alqurashi, Gohar Rehman, Aqil Tariq, Shakeel Ahmed Talpur, Javed Iqbal, Mamoona Munir, Enas E. Hussein
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021
• Subjects: hydrogeochemical facies; water–rock interaction; groundwater; water quality index (WQI); multivariate analysis; health risk rate (HRR); Hydraulic engineering; TC1-978; Water supply for domestic and industrial purposes; TD201-500; Wilcox; Carbonic acid
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3390/w13233361; https://doaj.org/article/cae33537f7c841d8af1008b019349697

For shallow groundwater, hydrogeochemical processes and quality assessment must be addressed because shallow groundwater is freely available in many parts of the globe. Due to recent anthropogenic activities and environmental changes in Sakrand, Sindh, Pakistan, the groundwater is extremely vulnerable. To provide safe drinking and agricultural water, hydrogeochemical analysis is required. Ninety-five groundwater samples were analyzed using agricultural and drinking indices to determine the hydrogeochemical parameters using multivariate analysis such as Pearson correlations, principal component cluster analysis, as well as Piper diagrams and Gibbs plot for drinking and agricultural indices. An abundance of ions was observed through the statistical summary; however, cations and anions were recorded in the orders Na + > Ca 2+ > Mg 2+ > K + and HCO 3 − > Cl − > SO 4 2− > NO 3 − > F − . The hydrogeochemical process used to quantify the major reactions occurring in the groundwater system showed rock dominance; the Piper diagrams evaluated the water type. A mixed pattern of calcium, magnesium, and chloride ions (Ca 2+ −Mg 2+ −Cl − type) was observed. Additionally, the ion exchange method showed an excess of bicarbonate ions due to carbonic acid weathering. The water quality index (WQI) resulted 32.6% of groundwater being unsuitable for human consumption; however, the United States Salinity Laboratory (USSL) diagram showed 60% of samples were unsuitable for irrigation due to high salinity and the Wilcox diagram depicted 5% of samples lying in the unsuitable region. Most of the water samples were suitable for drinking; only a few samples were unsafe for drinking purposes for children due to the high hazard index.