Chemistry of groundwater in Gulbarga district, Karnataka, India

Groundwater quality of Gulbarga District is extensively monitored for two years of study period from October 1999 to September 2001. Twenty-five different sampling stations were selected for the study purpose in the city and five selected villages in the district. Gulbarga districts lies in the northern plains of Karnataka State, covers an area of 16,244 km² and lies between 16°-11′ and 17°-19′N latitude and 76°-54′E longitude The study revealed that the water sources in the area are heavily polluted. The major water quality parameters exceeding the permissible limits during all the seasons are total hardness, calcium hardness, magnesium hardness, alkalinity and MPN (Bacterial count) and other parameters have shown distinctive variation in different stations and season. Most of these parameters are correlated with one another. Statistical analysis of the data is presented.     

Impact of changed trophic status on the zooplankton composition in six water bodies of Dharwad district, Karnataka state (South India)

Morgan Island, located within the ACE Basin National Estuarine Research Reserve in South Carolina, is home to the only free-ranging colony of rhesus monkeys (Macca mulatta) in the continental United States. The purpose of this study was to assess environmental impacts of the monkey colony on water quality in adjacent tidal creeks and on island vegetation. Three tidal creeks were sampled: Morgan Creek, adjacent to the monkey colony; Back Creek, on Morgan Island not adjacent to the colony; and Rock Creek, on a nearby island unoccupied by monkeys. Temperature, salinity, pH, dissolved oxygen, nutrients and fecal coliform bacteria were measured six times at three sites in each of these creeks, and vegetation change analysis was conducted in a geographic information system using satellite imagery. Results showed elevated fecal coliform concentrations in the Morgan Creek site immediately adjacent to the colony, though no samples exceeded the standard set for recreational water use. Ribotyping reconnaissance matched four Escherichia coli isolates from Morgan and Back Creeks to the monkeys, identifying the colony as one source of fecal coliform bacteria, though relative source loadings could not be quantified. Significant differences were not observed between ammonia or orthophosphate levels in Morgan Creek relative to the other creeks tested; and vegetation change analysis showed a 35% increase in canopy cover between 1979 and 1999. Overall, these results suggest that the rhesus colony’s environmental impacts are localized and minimal. Results from this study provide baseline data on Morgan Island and may be useful in management decisions regarding the future of the monkey colony.     

Concentration of heavy metals in Karanja reservoir, Bidar district, Karnataka, India

In this study, some heavy metals concentrations (Zn, Pb, Fe, Mn, Cu, Ni) and other physico-chemical parameters were studied during October 2001 to September 2003 in Karanja reservoir, Bidar district. Water quality parameters were collected monthly basis whereas heavy metals were analyzed by Atomic Adsorption Spectrometer (AAS). Heavy metals have shown within the permissible limits, except Fe and Ni were recorded higher values in southwest monsoon, where as Mn has showed higher concentration in northeast monsoon in and summer. All other physico-chemical parameters are with in the permissible limit. Water is moderately hard and reservoir is productive.     

Water quality assessment of Almatti Reservoir of Bijapur (Karnataka State, India) with special reference to zooplankton

The present investigation deals with the limnobiotic status of Almatti reservoir from February, 2003 to January, 2005. The study revealed that, the distribution and population density of zooplankton species depend upon the physico-chemical factors of the environment. Statistical analysis showed that there exists a significant relation between the biological and non-biological factors. The benthic fauna constituting the food of fish can be utilized for extensive culture operation so that the nutrients in the reservoir are not only properly cycled but also serve as a check on further eutrophication.     

Hydrochemistry and evaluation of groundwater suitability for irrigation and drinking purposes in the Markandeya River basin, Belgaum District, Karnataka State, India

Markandeya River basin stretches geographically from 15°56?? to 16°08?? N latitude and 74°37?? to 74°58?? E longitude, positioned in the midst of Belgaum district, in the northern part of Karnataka. Since the quantity and quality of water available for irrigation in India is variable from place to place, groundwater quality in the Markandeya River basin was evaluated for its suitability for drinking and irrigation purposes by collecting 47 open and bore-well samples during the post-monsoon period of 2008. The quality assessment was made by estimating pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, hardness, and alkalinity besides major cations (Na^?+?, K^?+?, Ca^2?+?, and Mg^2?+?) and anions (HCO $_{3}^{\,\,-}$ , Cl^???, SO $_{4}^{\,\,2-}$ , PO $_{4}^{\,\,3-}$ , F^???, and NO $_{3}^{\,\,-}$ ). Based on these analyses, irrigation quality parameters like, sodium absorption ratio, %Na, residual sodium carbonate, residual sodium bicarbonate, chlorinity index, soluble sodium percentage, non-carbonate hardness, potential salinity, permeability index, Kelley??s ratio, magnesium hazard/ratio, index of base exchange, and exchangeable sodium ratio were calculated. According to Gibbs?? ratio, majority of water samples fall in the rock dominance field. The groundwater samples were categorized as normal chloride (95.75%), normal sulfate (95.75%), and normal bicarbonate (61.70%) water types based on Cl, SO₄, and HCO₃ concentrations. Based on the permeability index, majority of the samples belongs to classes 1 and 2, suggesting the suitability of groundwater for irrigation. The negative index of base exchange indicates the existence of chloro-alkaline disequilibrium (indirect base exchange reaction) existing in majority of the samples (68.08%) from the study area.     

Comparison of a Subjective and a Physical Approach for Identification of Priority Areas for Soil and Water Management in a Watershed – A Case Study of Nagwan Watershed in Hazaribagh District of Jharkhand, India

The present investigation was an attempt to compare the within-watershed prioritization capabilities of a physical model based SDSS with the SYI and RPI model based subjective-SDSS, conventionally devised for between-watershed prioritizations, by All India Soil Survey and Land Use Planning Division of Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India. Application of these two approaches on a test watershed situated in Damodar-Barakar catchment in India, the second most seriously eroded area in the world, demonstrated that the proposed physical model based SDSS was capable of realistically and logically mimicking the sub-watershed-scaled water and soil losses thereby suggesting its immense application potential for priority area identification within the test watershed. In contrast to the proposed physical method, the subjective approaches, which assigned totally reverse priorities to about 67–93% of the test-sub-watersheds, were observed to be incapable of realistically assessing the impact of topography and varied land use and soil types in the test watershed on their sub-watershed scaled run-off and soil loss generating potential. Besides, the physical approach could be used for assessing the annual dynamics of the total water and sediment yields, under prevailing resource management systems in the test watershed with good to moderately good correlation coefficients of 0.83 and 0.65; model efficiency coefficients of 0.54 and 0.70; mean relative errors of –4.28% and –17.97% and root mean square prediction errors of 71.8 mm and 9.63 t/ha, respectively.     

骆马湖水质变化特征及其富营养化评价

通过对骆马湖1997 - 2003年的水质监测,分析了骆马湖水体的主要污染物在不同湖区、不同水期、不同年际的时空变化规律,结果显示,骆马湖戴场湖区水质明显劣于其它湖区,骆马湖主要污染物在丰水期明显高于平、枯水期,骆马湖1997 - 2003年主要污染物浓度变化不十分明显.同时对骆马湖2003年的富营养化水平进行了评价,目前骆马湖处于中营养水平.针对骆马湖的富营养化防治提出了一些建议.     

Environmental assessment of water-courses of the Turvo Limpo River basin at the Minas Gerais State, Brazil

A study was performed to evaluate the environmental contamination in the Turvo Limpo River basin which receives effluent discharges from domestic (residential and commercial) activities. The watercourses examined were the São Bartolomeu Stream, Turvo Sujo River, and Turvo Limpo River, located in the Minas Gerais State, Brazil. Water samples were collected at the river-side and analyzed for evaluation of pollutant inputs. The pH, temperature, electrical conductivity, redox potential (Eh), dissolved oxygen (DO), total and settleable solids, visual color, hardness, chemical oxygen demand (COD), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chloride, total phosphate, total nitrogen, ammonia nitrogen, nitrate, total coliforms and E. coli, as well as the Cd, Pb, Cu, and Zn speciation were determined in the watercourses. The data obtained were compared with those of the Brazilian Environmental Standards and with data from non-contaminated areas. River water characteristics in some sites were far from the limit values established for superficial waters with satisfactory quality. For instance, the BOD values reached 411 mg L^?1 for a maximum limit of 10.0 mg L^?1, while the ammonia nitrogen concentration reached 28 mg L^?1 for a maximum limit of 13.3 mg L^?1. Some sites showed E. coli values above those of non-contaminated regions. Besides the effects of sewage discharges into the water-courses, agriculture activities and the use of the area for cattle husbandry influenced the quality of the river waters, for instance, the pH of a spring-water sample reached the value of 4.3. The São Bartolomeu Stream has been contributing to the deterioration of the water quality of the Turvo Sujo River, while the Turvo Limpo River has also been affected by anthropogenic discharges in the Turvo Sujo River. The speciation of Cd, Cu and Pb showed that these metals were mainly found in the particulate fraction (i. e., associated with the suspended material). Fifty five percent of the water samples showed labile Zn concentrations greater than that of the nonlabile Zn.     

Temporal variation in the specific growth rate of bacterioplankton in the River Cauvery and its four down stream tributaries in Karnataka State, India

The temporal variation in the Specific Growth Rate (SGR) of natural population of heterotrophic bacterioplankton of the river Cauvery and its four down stream tributaries in Karnataka State was monitored over a period of two years from February 2000 to January 2002. The SGR was calculated by taking into account only the abundance of bacterioplankton at the beginning (0 h) and at the end (48 h) incubation period, at room or river temperature. The mean SGR was less and significantly different in the surface waters of river Kapila, Shimsha, Suvarnavathy and Arkavathy. But it was more and significantly different in river Cauvery when compared to other tributaries. This suggests that the river Cauvery was more favorable habitat for SGR of bacterioplankton than the other four watercourses studied. Investigation of interrelationship between SGR and other bacterial variables showed presence of only one correlation with direct counts of particle bound bacteria in river Arkavathy. Further, the relationship between SGR of bacterioplankton and other environmental variables showed the presence of six correlations in river Shimsha, five in river Suvarnavathy, three in river Cauvery, and two each in river Kapila and river Arkavathy. Negative SGR were recorded on thirteen occasions in river Cauvery followed by eleven in river Shimsha, nine in river Suvarnavathy, seven in river Arkavathy and five in river Kapila, out of fifty SGR determinations. This negative SGR were a result of decrease in the observed bacterial cell counts after 48 h incubation from that of 0 h count. The probable reason for such negative growth rate and dependency of SGR of bacterioplankton and environmental variables has been discussed.     

Quality assessment of freshwater and coastal seawater in the Ionian area of N.E. Sicily,Italy

This work was conducted to analyse pressing and competingdemands of water in Northeast Sicily, Italy. In thisarea, looking at the Ionian Sea, freshwaters and coastalseawaters have been studied on the quality and on thetransport processes of pollutants. Attention has beenfocused on chemical and microbial parameters proposed byEuropean Directives for drinking freshwaters and bathingseawaters. The findings show that the ground freshwaters areof good quality but the surface ones, particularly torrentsand correlated under-river aquifers, are clearly polluted.The characteristics of the coastal seawaters are accordingwith those of the closely bound up estuarine waters.Contamination is due essentially to discharge of raw sewagein the watercourses by public and private pipes. The impactis usually less evident during the wet season because rainand seastorms dilute the polluting load, but in dry periodsthis pollution causes loss of habitat and deleterious effectson environment. A database has been developed to provide agraphic and mapping display interface of the area studied andto assist the management of the studied fluvial basins.     

Agricultural Lakes in Finland: Current Water Quality and Trends

Agriculture is the largest source of nutrients into surface waters in Finland, and yet relatively little is known about the actual impact of the agricultural load on the state of lakes. We analysed the water quality data of 20 Finnish agricultural lakes and found that they had higher levels of nutrients, chlorophyll a and turbidity than did the other types of lakes (e.g. those receiving point-source load) in the national monitoring network (the Finnish Eurowaternet). Currently, six of the agricultural lakes can be classified as eutrophic and 14 as hypertrophic. Trend analysis (based on Kendall's tau-b) indicated that during 1976–2002 the water quality of the lakes either remained constant or showed signs of increasing eutrophication and elevated turbidity. Decreasing nutrient concentrations were found only in one intensively restored lake. In none of the lakes had the chlorophyll a concentration decreased. The results of the trend analysis are compatible with the recent finding that, despite vigorous efforts, the nutrient load from agriculture has not declined in Finland. Recovery of the most eutrophied agricultural lakes would call for a drastic reduction in the external nutrient load, possibly supplemented with in-lake restoration.     

Heavy Metal Concentrations in Water, Sediments and Body Tissues of Red Worm (Tubifex spp.) Collected from Natural Habitats in Mumbai, India

Live feeds, especially Tubifex spp., which are collected from a wide variety of polluted habitats, are used by aquarium fish keepers in India. These habitats receive domestic sewage and industrial wastes from nearby residential and industrial areas. Reports of morbidity and mortality from aquarium fish culturists in and around Mumbai led to the present investigations on the ecology of these habitats with a view to assess the water quality, presence of heavy metals in the environment and their bioaccumulation in Tubifex worms, and to examine whether these habitats could be exploited to meet the demand of the industry. Six natural red worm (Tubifex spp.) collection centres in Mumbai and Thane districts of Maharashtra state in India constituting a major source of live Tubifex supply to aquarium fish industry were evaluated for pollution, heavy metal concentration in water, sediments and in the body tissues of Tubifex. Data revealed the presence of heavy metals in water and sediments at collection sites and bioaccumulation of cadmium, iron, lead, zinc and copper in body tissues of Tubifex worms. Cadmium ranged from 2.38 to 7.21 mg/kg, iron 671.9 to 5738 mg/kg, lead 14.95 to 33.49 mg/kg, zinc 60.20 to 166.60 mg/kg and copper 29.38 to 108.90 mg/kg of dry Tubifex worms. The study suggests that all the six collection sites are polluted and the red worms contaminated with heavy metals and hence, unfit for use in aquaria or feeding any variety of fish or crustaceans in the hatcheries.     

A pilot study on water pollution and characterization of multidrug-resistant superbugs from Byramangala tank, Ramanagara district, Karnataka, India

Urbanization and industrialization has increased the strength and qualities of municipal sewage in Bangalore, India. The disposal of sewage into natural water bodies became a serious issue. Byramangala reservoir is one such habitat enormously polluted in South India. The water samples were collected from four hotspots of Byramangala tank in 3 months. The biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and bacterial counts were determined. The fecal coliforms were identified by morphological, physiological, and biochemical studies. The antibiotics sensitivity profiling of isolated bacteria were further carried out. We have noticed that a high content of BOD in the tank in all the 3 months. The total and fecal counts were found to be varied from 1.6?×?10⁶ to 8.2?×?10⁶?colony forming unit/ml and >5,500/100 ml, respectively. The variations in BOD and total count were found to be statistically significant at p?>?0.05. Many pathogenic bacteria were characterized and most of them were found to be multidrug resistant. Salmonella showed resistance to cefoperazone, cefotaxime, cefixime, moxifloxacin, piperacillin/tazobactam, co-trimoxazole, levofloxacin, trimethoprim, and ceftazidime. Escherichia coli showed resistance to chloramphenicol, trimethoprim, co-trimoxazole, rifampicin, and nitrofurantoin while Enterobacter showed resistant to ampicillin, cefepime, ceftazidime, cefoperazone, and cefotaxime. Klebsiella and Shigella exhibited multiple drug resistance to conventional antibiotics. Staphylococcus showed resistance to vancomycin, methicillin, oxacillin, and tetracycline. Furthermore, Salmonella and Klebsiella are on the verge of acquiring resistance to even the strongest carbapenems-imipenem and entrapenem. Present study revealed that Byramanagala tank has become a cesspool of multidrug-resistant “superbugs” and will be major health concern in South Bangalore, India.     

Hydrological influences on the water quality trends in Tamiraparani Basin,South India

Water quality variables – Turbidity, pH, Electrical Conductivity(EC), Chlorides and Total Hardness (TH) were monitored at adownstream location in the Tamiraparani River during 1978–1992. The observations were made at weekly intervals in a watertreatment and supply plant using standard methods. Graphical andstatistical analyses were used for data exploration, trenddetection and assessment. Box-Whisker plots of annual andseasonal changes in variables indicated apparent trends beingpresent in the data and their response to the seasonal influenceof the monsoon rainfall. Further, the examination of the medianvalues of the variables indicated that changes in the directionof trend occurred during 1985–1986, especially in pH, EC and TH. The statistical analyses were done using non-parametric methods,the ANCOVA on rank transformed data and the Seasonal Man-Kendalltest. The presence of monotonic trend in all the water qualityvariables was confirmed, however, with independent direction ofchange. The trend line was fitted by the method of leastsquares. The estimated values indicated significant increases inEC (28 S cm^-1) while significant decreases were observed inturbidity (90 NTU), pH (0.78), and total hardness (23 ppm) in a span of 15 years. The changes induced in river flow by the addition of a stabilizing reservoir, the influence of seasonal and spatialpattern of monsoon rainfall across the river basin and the increased agriculture appear causative factors for the water quality trends seen in the Tamiraparani River system.     

钦州湾近岸海域水质状况及富营养化分析

2012年5月钦州湾近岸海域水质监测结果表明,钦州湾近岸水温、盐度、pH、溶解氧等基本环境参数均有利于亚热带海洋生物的生长繁殖;溶解无机氮(DIN)和活性硅酸盐(SiO2-3-Si)均显示过剩,但溶解无机磷(DIP)具有低磷特征,高的氮磷比值使PO3-4-P可能成为浮游植物生长的潜在限制因子,且COD部分站位出现超标现象。污染指数(A)和单因子污染指数(Pi)结果显示,近期整个钦州湾近岸水域污染程度达到2级,属于开始受到污染,水质受到化学耗氧有机物不同程度的污染,超标率达到30%。富营养状态指数结果表明,钦州湾近岸海域总体尚未达到富营养化,但局部区域已出现富营养化状况。COD对富营养化的贡献率平均值及范围为72.46%(67.36%~83.96%),COD已成为影响钦州湾近岸海域富营养化的重要因素。     

Antennal Deformities of Chironomid Larvae and Their Use in Biomonitoring of Heavy Metal Pollutants in the River Damodar of West Bengal,India

Analyses of sediment and water indicate the presence of heavy metal pollutants like lead, zinc, copper, mercury and cadmium of the river Damodar of India. These metals are responsible for causing morphological deformities of antennae and other parts of chironomid larvae. Percentage of deformity correlated positively with the concentrations of Pb in water and sediment (r > 0.6) at the confluence point. A new severity index, SISS_(antenna) has been proposed here to assess deformity at the family or subfamily level.     

Hydro-chemical Survey of Groundwater of Hisar City and Assessment of Defluoridation Methods Used in India

Ground water quality of Hisar city was assessed for its suitability for drinking purposes. Samples collected from the Bore-wells (forms a part of municipal water supply) and handpumps (direct consumption) were analyzed for the various physico-chemical parameters including pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved salts, total hardness, total alkalinity, sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, carbonate, bicarbonate, chloride and sulfate. The concentrations of magnesium, sodium, potassium, sulfate and especially of chloride were found moderately higher than the WHO standards for the drinking water. Further a comparison of fluoride (F⁻) levels in groundwater of various cities and towns of Haryana state was performed. The relatively higher concentrations of F⁻ in groundwater of Haryana raise the risk of fluorosis and hence groundwater must be used with proper treatment. Promising defluoridation methods using locally available materials and technologies are discussed for the prevention and control of fluorosis. Data were assessed statistically to find the suitable markers of ground water quality as an aid to monitoring groundwater quality.     

Water Quality Assessment of an Untreated Effluent Impacted Urban Stream: The Bharalu Tributary of the Brahmaputra River, India

Guwahati, the lone city on the bank of the entire midstream of the Brahmaputra River, is facing acute civic problem due to severe depletion of water quality of its natural water bodies. This work is an attempt towards water quality assessment of a relatively small tributary of the Brahmaputra called the Bharalu River flowing through the city that has been transformed today into a city drainage channel. By analyzing the key physical, chemical and biological parameters for samples drawn from different locations, an assessment of the dissolved load and pollution levels at different segments in the river was made. Locations where the contaminants exceeded the permissible limits during different seasons were identified by examining spatial and temporal variations. A GIS developed for the watershed with four layers of data was used for evaluating the influence of catchment land use characteristics. BOD, DO and total phosphorus were found to be the sensitive parameters that adversely affected the water quality of Bharalu. Relationship among different parameters revealed that the causes and sources of water quality degradation in the study area were due to catchments input, anthropogenic activities and poor waste management. Elevated levels of total phosphorus, BOD and depleted DO level in the downstream were used to develop an ANN model by taking total phosphorus and BOD as inputs and dissolved oxygen as output, which indicated that an ANN based predictive tool can be utilized for monitoring water quality in the future.     

Water Quality Evaluation and Trend Analysis in Selected Watersheds of the Atlantic Region of Canada

Water quality indices (WQIs) have been developed to assess the suitability of water for a variety of uses. These indices reflect the status of water quality in lakes, streams, rivers, and reservoirs. The concept of WQIs is based on a comparison of the concentration of contaminants with the respective environmental standards. The number, frequency, and magnitude by which the environmental standards for specific variables are not met in a given time period are reflected in WQIs. Further, the water quality trend analysis predicts the behavior of the water quality parameters and overall water quality in the time domain. In this paper, the concept of WQI was applied to three selected watersheds of Atlantic region: the Mersey River, the Point Wolfe River, and the Dunk River sites. To have robust study, two different water quality indices are used: Canadian Water Quality Index (CWQI), and British Columbia Water Quality Index (BWQI). The complete study was conducted in two steps. The first step was to organize and process the data into a format compatible with WQI analysis. After processing the input data, the WQI was calculated. The second step outlined in the paper discusses detailed trend analysis using linear and quadratic models for all the three sites. As per the 25 years trend analysis, overall water quality for agriculture use observed an improving trend at all the three sites studied. Water quality for raw water used for drinking (prior to treatment) and aquatic uses has shown improving trend at Point Wolfe River. It is further observed that pH, SO₄, and NO₃ concentrations are improving at Dunk River, Mersey River, and Point Wolfe River sites. To ascertain the reliability and significance of the trend analysis, a detailed error analysis and parametric significance tests were also conducted It was observed that for most of the sites and water uses quadratic trend models were a better fit than the linear models.