Assessment of Groundwater Physicochemical Quality in Gbêkê Region of Côte d’Ivoire Using Water Quality Indices and Multivariate Analysis

Abstract

The large demand for drinking water in Gbêkê region of Côte d’Ivoire is supplied from groundwater sources. This study investigated the groundwater physicochemical quality in Gbêkê region of Côte d’Ivoire based on preselected 24 boreholes. Groundwater evaluation index and focused principal components analysis were used to assess water physicochemical quality, which is a major factor for controlling the groundwater quality in term of drinking purposes. Most of the groundwater were acidic and presented low mineralization. Hydrochemical facies was Mg-Ca-Cl type. Groundwater quality index values ranged from 11.69 to 119.37. The analysis shows that about 96% of the samples were belonging to excellent quality water for drinking purposes. Focused principal components analysis suggests that groundwater quality was mainly related to geogenic (rock–water interaction) and anthropogenic source (agrogenic and domestic sewage) in the study area. It is expected that outcomes of the study will provide insights for decision makers taking proper measures for groundwater quality management in central Côte d'Ivoire.