Application of a groundwater quality index as an assessment and communication tool in agro-environmental policies – Two Portuguese case studies

Stigter, Tibor; Ribeiro, Luís; Dill, Alexander

doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2005.12.001

Cited by 108 publications

(65 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Methodology for overall Water Quality Index (OWQI) has been developed for surface water by Singh et al 8 which can be used for groundwater also 10 . As reported by Singh et al 8 , to gauge the influence of each individual parameter on a common single scale, the score generated by each parameter was averaged-out.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Variation in Water Quality Index (WQI) of Groundwater in North Goa, India

Krishan

Kumar

Purandara

et al. 2016

Curr. World Environ

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A water quality index (WQI) is a tool which numerically summarizes the information from multiple water quality parameters into a single value and this information can be used to assess spatial and temporal variations in overall water quality. However, these indices are time and region specific and may be influenced by local factors. In the present study, water quality index has been worked out to assess the spatial and temporal variation of groundwater quality status for future planning and management of North Goa. Data of 19 groundwater samples were collected in the year 2005 during January, March and April, are used for the analysis. The Water Quality Index has been computed using four parameters viz. pH, Total Dissolved Solids, Total Hardness and Chloride. The WQI results show that the overall water quality class is 'good' and water is acceptable for domestic use.

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Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Variation in Water Quality Index (WQI) of Groundwater in North Goa, India

Krishan

Kumar

Purandara

et al. 2016

Curr. World Environ

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“…EU member states had, among other actions, to identify waters affected by nitrate contamination and to designate Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZs) (Stigter et al 2006(Stigter et al , 2011. Within this context it is important to note that groundwater and surface water are a single and global resource (Winter et al 1998;Sophocleous 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of groundwater contamination in an agricultural peri-urban area (NW Portugal): an integrated approach

et al. 2014

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The excessive use of pesticides and fertilisers in agriculture has generated a decrease in groundwater and surface water quality in many regions of the EU, consti-tuting a hazard for human health and the environment. Besides, on-site sewage disposal is an important source of groundwater contamination in urban and peri-urban areas. The assessment of groundwater vulnerability to contami-nation is an important tool to fulfil the demands of EU Directives. The purpose of this study is to assess the groundwater vulnerability to contamination related mainly to agricultural activities in a peri-urban area (Vila do Conde, NW Portugal). The hydrogeological framework is characterised mainly by fissured granitic basement and sedimentary cover. Water samples were collected and analysed for temperature, pH, electrical conductivity, chloride, phosphate, nitrate and nitrite. An evaluation of groundwater vulnerability to contamination was applied (GOD-S, Pesticide DRASTIC-Fm, SINTACS and SI) and the potential nitrate contamination risk was assessed, both on a hydrogeological GIS-based mapping. A principal component analysis was performed to characterised pat-terns of relationship among groundwater contamination, vulnerability, and the hydrogeological setting assessed. Levels of nitrate above legislation limits were detected in 75 % of the samples analysed. Alluvia units showed the highest nitrate concentrations and also the highest vulner-ability and risk. Nitrate contamination is a serious problem affecting groundwater, particularly shallow aquifers, especially due to agriculture activities, livestock and cesspools. GIS-based cartography provided an accurate way to improve knowledge on water circulation models and global functioning of local aquifer systems. Finally, this study highlights the adequacy of an integrated approach, combining hydrogeochemical data, vulnerability assessments and multivariate analysis, to understand groundwater processes in peri-urban areas.

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“…Such water quality indices (WQIs) have been developed with the aim of rapidly combining a large quantity of chemical information of a water sample into a single value and thereby easily monitor spatial and temporal fluctuations of water quality (e.g. Harkins, 1974;Backman et al, 1998;Stigter et al, 2006b). For a given period t 0 −t u , where t 0 and t u are the initial and final dates of the considered analyses, the SVI is calculated in the following way:…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Screening of sustainable groundwater sources for integration into a regional drought-prone water supply system

Stigter¹,

Monteiro

Nunes

et al. 2009

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. This paper reports on the qualitative and quantitative screening of groundwater sources for integration into the public water supply system of the Algarve, Portugal. The results are employed in a decision support system currently under development for an integrated water resources management scheme in the region. Such a scheme is crucial for several reasons, including the extreme seasonal and annual variations in rainfall, the effect of climate change on more frequent and long-lasting droughts, the continuously increasing water demand and the high risk of a single-source water supply policy. The latter was revealed during the severe drought of 2004 and 2005, when surface reservoirs were depleted and the regional water demand could not be met, despite the drilling of emergency wells.For screening and selection, quantitative criteria are based on aquifer properties and well yields, whereas qualitative criteria are defined by water quality indices. These reflect the well's degree of violation of drinking water standards for different sets of variables, including toxicity parameters, nitrate and chloride, iron and manganese and microbiological parameters. Results indicate the current availability of at least 1100 l s −1 of high quality groundwater (55% of the regional demand), requiring only disinfection (900 l s −1 ) or basic treatment, prior to human consumption. These groundwater withdrawals are sustainable when compared to mean annual recharge, considering that at least 40% is preserved for ecological demands. A more accurate and comprehensive analysis of sustainability is performed with the help of steady-state and transient groundwater flow simulations, which account for aquifer geometry, boundary conditions, recharge and discharge rates, pumping activity and seasonCorrespondence to: T. Y. Stigter (tibor.stigter@ist.utl.pt) ality. They permit an advanced analysis of present and future scenarios and show that increasing water demands and decreasing rainfall will make the water supply system extremely vulnerable, with a high risk of groundwater salinization and ecosystem degradation.

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Application of a groundwater quality index as an assessment and communication tool in agro-environmental policies – Two Portuguese case studies

Cited by 108 publications

References 11 publications

Assessment of Variation in Water Quality Index (WQI) of Groundwater in North Goa, India

Assessment of Variation in Water Quality Index (WQI) of Groundwater in North Goa, India

Assessment of groundwater contamination in an agricultural peri-urban area (NW Portugal): an integrated approach

Screening of sustainable groundwater sources for integration into a regional drought-prone water supply system

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