Study on the groundwater quality of Bardsir using the CCME-WQI quality index

Study on the groundwater quality of Bardsir using the CCME-WQI quality indexDocument Type: Research Paper Marjan Salari1*, Faezeh Ghaffari21* Assistant Professor, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Sirjan University of Technology2 Undergraduate student, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Sirjan University of TechnologyCorresponding author's email: salari.marjan@gmail.comAbstractThe water quality index is a crucial part of the water resource management system, and it is the Richter scale used to evaluate the water quality and categorize various water consumptions. In this study, we employed the Water Quality Index (WQI) and the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment Water (CCME) to evaluate the groundwater quality of Bardsir for drinking and agricultural purposes following the standards of the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), World Health Organization (WHO), and Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). Samples were taken from 20 wells for two water years (2017-19). This research aims to study the qualitative parameters EC, HCO3-, Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, TDS, TH, SO42-, Cl-, and pH. The groundwater samples are categorized into 5 categories (from perfect to undrinkable). The results show that the WQI average is estimated at 6/027 following WHO standards and 2/261 following FAO standards in 2017-18; in addition, the CCME average is estimated at 79/186 following FAO standards, and 64/429 following BIS standards. These results also exhibit that the WQI is 6/905 following WHO standards and 3/130 following FAO standards in 2018-19; the CCME average is 81/966 following FAO standards and 64/297 following BIS standards. The overall results show that the quality of the groundwater in all the sampling wells is categorized as perfect considering WQI and based on FAO and WHO standards; considering the CCME and based on BIS, and FAO, the groundwater quality of most wells were categorized as perfect, and only a few were categorized as undrinkable. This will be discussed thoroughly in the conclusion.IntroductionWater is one of the most vital substances on earth and the lives of all living creatures such as humans, animals, and plants depend on it. Water is known as a universal solvent because of its capacity for solubility. Water is a common substance that exists in solid, liquid, and gas forms. The most significant water resources on earth are groundwaters (wells, springs, and aqueducts), meteoric waters (rain and snow), and surface waters (rivers, lakes, seas, and oceans); some are in the form of atmospheric water vapor, and others are in the solid form found in natural glaciers. Groundwaters are used for drinking, agricultural, and industrial purposes in the world. Various elements exist in groundwaters in different measures which can be beneficial or harmful; therefore, the quality of these resources should be studied and categorized. The quality of groundwaters depends on various factors like precipitation, aquifer power supply resources, water table surface, and geochemical processes. The World Health Organization reported that approximately 80 percent of diseases originate from polluted water. Therefore, continuous monitoring of the quality of groundwaters and preventing any kind of pollution is vital. The quality of groundwaters is evaluated through their physical, chemical, and biological traits. The water quality index is a beneficial agent in demonstrating the water quality through significant parameters CCME, and WQI which are among the most practical tools for the evaluation and management of groundwaters. WQI and CCME were employed to study the quality of groundwaters in Bardsir. Parameters EC, HCO3-, Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, TDS, TH, SO42-, Cl-, and pH were studied following WHO -FAO -BIS standards.Methodology Bardsir is a city with a pleasant climate, located in Kerman province, southeast of Iran. There is a 65 kilometers distance from Bardsir to Kerman. The climate is temperate and alpine, which means sad the summers of Bardsir are breezy and winters are cold and snowy. It is 2044 meters above sea level. This city has four central sections called Negar, Lale-zar, and Gol-zar. The population of Bardsir is estimated at 81,983 according to the 2016 census. Selection of sampling areasThe data on the quality of groundwater used in this research was gathered from several wells during two statistical years (2017-19) by Bardsir's regional water authority (presented in table 1). A few parameters were employed for the statistical analysis of the area and they are EC, HCO3-, Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, TDS, TH, SO42-, Cl-, and pH (the measurements are presented in tables 2 and 3). Determining the qualitative parameters is the most important factor in assessing WQI. The effects of these parameters on water pollution depend on the standards presented by international and regional organizations. • WQI IndexThe water quality index for drinking or irrigation purposes expresses the overall water quality through a single number at a specific time and place based on different water quality parameters (Yogendra & Puttaiah, 2008).• CCME IndexIn the current research, the method provided by the Canadian Ministry of Environment under the title of CCME was used to determine the condition of the underground water quality of Bardsir city; In this method, for water quality rating, the following three parameters should be determined first (Al-Hamdani et al., 2021):1- Territory (A1) : This parameter indicates the number of variables that are not within the scope of water quality standards.2- Frequency (A2): This parameter represents the percentage of unit tests that do not fall within the range of standards (unsuccessful tests).3-Frequency (A3): It shows the number of rejected tests that do not fall within the scope of the standards.ConclusionIn this research, the quality of groundwater in Bardsir was evaluated based on WQI following WHO standards for parameters (HCO3-, Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, TDS, TH, SO42-, Cl-, pH), and following FAO standards for parameters (HCO3-, Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, TDS, TH, SO42-, Cl-, pH); additionally, based on CCME following FAO standards for parameters (HCO3-, Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, TDS, TH, SO42-, Cl-, pH), and following BIS for parameters (EC, HCO3-, Ca2+, Mg2+, TDS, TH, SO42-, Cl-, pH). The results show that the water quality of all wells is categorized as perfect based on WQI and following WHO, and FAO standards; and based on CCME and following BIS and FAO standards, the water quality of the majority of wells is perfect and only a few are categorized as undrinkable.keywords: "Groundwater Quality", "Bardsir Plain", "Water Quality", "WQI Index", "CCME Index".