Natural dilution and distribution of ammonia of groundwater in Kuta Alam sub-district, Banda Aceh city 16 years post tsunami

Abstract

The 2004 earthquake off the west coast of Aceh caused a catastrophic tsunami. The massive influx of seawater into the land affected the environment, especially groundwater. Kuta Alam was one of the sub-districts worst affected by the tsunami. In 2005 and 2006, the quality of groundwater degraded due to, among others, the content of ammonia compounds. Increasing the population density after city reconstruction became a problem for the environment as domestic waste also pollutes the groundwater. This study proved that while 2 of the 3 research samples showed a decrease in the level of ammonia compounds in groundwater. One sampling in a densely populated area showed an increase of ammonia concentration. In areas that are not densely populated, ammonia compounds have diluted to an acceptable level, but an increase was found in densely populated areas. This indicated that the pollution was most likely occur around high population area. Proofing through a simple linear regression analysis showed a strong correlation between the content of ammonia compounds and population density.