Abstract
Abstract This study was carried out on the surface water of Oued Fodda dam in western Algeria, and aimed to evaluate the seasonal variations of chemical characteristics with the aim to define the processes controlling the mineralization of surface water in this dam. The results showed significant variations in the majority of parameters during the study period from 2009 to 2013, indicating slightly alkaline water, and a SO4-Cl-Ca-Mg water type. Principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis (CA) were used to explain the correlations between the parameters analysed, and the probable sources of surface water contamination. The calculation of saturation indices (SI) of water indicated undersaturated water with respect to halite (NaCl), and equilibrium with respect to the other minerals. While, the temporal variation of physico-chemical parameters such as EC, TDS, SO4 2-, Cl-, Ca2+, Mg2+ indicated a reverse adjustment between physico-chemical parameters and water volumes (WV) in this dam, which can be explained by the weathering of silicate and carbonate minerals, these were justified by the use of ionic ratios, diagrams and scatter plots and multivariate statistical techniques. Conversely, evaluation of the organic water pollution level in this dam showed a water quality from moderately to severely polluted.
Highlights
The dilemma of water is the most challenge in worldwide, whether in terms of quantity or quality
The total dissolved solids (TDS) values were negatively correlated with water volume (WV) (r = -0.62), that means when water volumes were low in this dam the TDS had high values and vice versa (Table 1)
According to the chemical analysis results of the major ions of the dam water, we observed the abundance of Ca2+ and Na+ cations, which probably come from CaCO3 soils, and the abundance SO42- and Cl- anions, which can be related to the water-rock interaction process and to anthropogenic activities
Summary
The dilemma of water is the most challenge in worldwide, whether in terms of quantity or quality. In arid and semi-arid areas, in under developed contries, surface water (lakes, dams and rivers) is vulnerable to all kinds of pollution which pose problems of water quality deterioration, due to the influence of uncontrolled public disharges, untreated solid and liquid wastes, intensive use of agricultural fertilizers, overexploition of water, evaportaion, erosion and sediment silting, which generate abnormal change to the watershed ecosystem (AL KUISI ET AL., 2009; KUMARI & RAI, 2020). All debris comes from living organisms which develop an ecosystem, but sometimes can contribute to the deterioration of water quality of lakes and reservoirs, by increasing organic matter and algal proliferation, which leads to an increase in eutrophication and a decrease in oxygen concentration during the decomposition of organic substances (WU & CHEN, 2013; RAMESH & ELANGO, 2012; KÜKRER & MUTLU, 2019). Several studies in the literature which examined surface water hydrochemistry, found that natural conditions contribute considerably to the hydrochemical processes of water bodies 2. Study area human activities near to rivers or lakes
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