Abstract
Groundwater is a valuable resource, and its quality is critical to human survival. Optimal farming and urbanization degraded groundwater reserves. This research investigates and reports the spatial variability of selected heavy metals developed in the Liwa area of the United Arab Emirates. Forty water samples were collected from existing wells and analyzed for different elements. Principal components analysis was applied to a subgroup of the data set in terms of their usefulness for determining the variability of groundwater quality variables. Geographic information systems were used to produce contour maps to analyze the distribution of heavy metals. Ordinary kriging was used with Circular, Spherical, Tetraspherical, Pentaspherical-Bessel, K-Bessel, Hole effect, and Stable models for better representation. The water quality index was constructed using heavy metal concentrations and other variables. This yielded a value of 900 beyond the limit stated by WHO and US EPA. Nugget analysis showed that Cd (0), K (7.38%), and SO4 (1.81%) variables exhibited strong spatial dependence. Al (27%), Ba (40.87%), Cr (63%), Cu (34%), EC (27%), HCO3 (56%), NO3(36%), Pb (64%), and TDS (53%) represented moderate spatial dependence. As (76%), Mn (79%), Ni (100%), pH (100%), Temp (93%), and Zn (100%) exhibited weak spatial dependence.
Highlights
Groundwater reaches the aperture of the landmass and its interior through natural, artificial, and indirect recharge
Water quality classification based on water quality index (WQI) value
The detailed analyses show that this study offers background information on the groundwater parameters and factors that affect groundwater quality
Summary
Groundwater reaches the aperture of the landmass and its interior through natural, artificial, and indirect recharge. It was used by at least 2 billion people [1]. This infringement of this precious resource can be attributed to its nearest obtainability with partial efforts and spatial obstinacy. Aquifers at specific demand locations are being drained, and this state may lead to deprivation of this indispensable resource unless allayed [2]. The hydraulic conductivity and permeability of the rocks depend on the rocks’ porosity [3]. Heavy metals are among the most significant pollutants of groundwater sources [4,5]. The toxicity of heavy metals depends on their concentration levels in the environment
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