Water Quality Studies of the Kapadak River Basin, South-Western Bangladesh with Special Emphasis on Environmental Degradation
Authors
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Department of Geology and Mining, University of Rajshahi
Mrinal Kanti Roy -
Department of Geology and Mining, University of Rajshahi
Pulin Chandra Roy
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Department of Geology and Mining, University of Rajshahi
A. H. M. Selim Reza
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Isotope Hydrology Division, Bangladesh Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Savar, Dhaka
Nasir Ahmed
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Isotope Hydrology Division, Bangladesh Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Savar, Dhaka
Md. Moniruzzaman
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Isotope Hydrology Division, Bangladesh Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Savar, Dhaka
Shahadat Hossain
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12594-019-1369-4Keywords:
No Keywords.Abstract
The Kapadak River basin in SW Bangladesh lies on late Holocene-Recent alluvium of the Ganges deltaic plain in the north and Ganges estuarine plain in the south. The anion and cation trends in the analyzed shallow-tube well and river water are Cl->HCO-3>NO-3>SO42- and Na+>K+>Ca2+>Mg2+ respectively. The groundwater of the area is of sodium-calcium cation facies and chloride-bicarbonate to carbonate-sulfate anion facies. The river water is of sodium-potassium cation facies and chloride-bicarbonate - sulphate to chloride–sulphate-bicarbonate anion facies. The shallow tube well is contaminated with arsenic which exceeds the WHO recommended value for drinking water (10 +g/l). The shallow water contains salinity above the standard which is unsuitable for drinking as well as for agricultural activities. The concentration of arsenic, sodium, calcium, potassium, chlorine, bicarbonate, percentage of salinity and specific electrical conductance decreases with increasing depth. The shallow tube well water of the study area is very saline exceeding the permissible limit and requires treatment. The deep tube-well water contains lower amount of arsenic and sodium, lower percentage of salinity and specific electrical conductance in comparison to shallow tubewell water. As a result, the deep tube-well water is free from arsenic toxicity and has low to high salinity hazard, but is also hard that exceeds the tolerable limit of hardness of groundwater for drinking, public health and agricultural purposes and requires softening. The Kapadak river water is highly concentrated with sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, chloride, bicarbonate, and specific electrical conductance which cause the deterioration of river water quality for agricultural purposes. According to the values of TDS, EC, boron concentration, Na%, and SAR, the shallow tube-well water as well as river water is of poor quality and unsafe for irrigation purposes, while the deep tube-well water is poorly safe for drinking and irrigation purposes. As a whole in the study area groundwater quality degrades from north to south as southern part is inundated regularly by saline estuarine water. The chemical weathering of rock-forming minerals influences the groundwater quality. Entrapped saline water in the aquifers during the Holocene time is the main source of salinity in this area with minor contribution from dissolution of halides and saline estuarine water in the Kapadak river due to tidal inundation.
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