Physicochemical Characteristics of Groundwater from Mundra Taluka of Kachchh District

Abstract

Water is indispensable and one of the precious natural resources of this planet and groundwater is an important source of water supply throughout the world. Water is a prime need for human survival and industrial development and it is also considered as the only source of drinking water in many rural and small communities. The chemical constituents in groundwater are one of the major factors which decide the water for suitability for various purposes such as domestic, industrial, agricultural. Groundwater is getting polluted due to urbanization and industrialization in the recent times. Though this water contributes about 0.6% of the total water resources on earth, it accounts for rural domestic water needs (80%) and urban water needs (50%) in developing countries. Groundwater is the only source of water supply for some countries in the world (Denmark, Malta, Saudi Arabia, etc.). It is an essential part of total water resources in the other countries. Groundwater in Tunisia is 95% of the country's total water resources, in Belgium, it is 83%, in the Netherlands, Germany, and Morocco it is 75%. In most European countries (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Hungary, and Romania) groundwater use exceeds 70% of the total water consumption. In countries with arid and semiarid climate groundwater is widely used for irrigation. About one-third of the land mass is irrigated by groundwater. Out of the total irrigated farming land in the USA, 45% is irrigated by groundwater, 58% in Iran, 67% in Algeria, and in Libya irrigated farming totally based on groundwater. The water sample collected from different villages during February to March 2016 and analysis of physicochemical characteristics. The various physicochemical parameters such as pH, electrical conductivity, Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD), Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), Sodium, Potassium, Magnesium, Total Hardness, Chloride, Calcium, Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), Total Suspended Solid(TSS), Dissolved Oxygen were analyzed. All the reagents and standards required for the study was prepared using Millipore water.