River health assessment using macroinvertebrates and water quality parameters: A case of the Orange River in Namibia

Munyika, Shishani; Kongo, Victor; Kimwaga, Richard

doi:10.1016/j.pce.2015.01.001

Cited by 28 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 10 publications

(2 reference statements)

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“…Meanwhile, the five macroinvertebrate based indices (BMWP, FBI, Margalef, Simpson and Jaccard) to evaluate the water quality status in the Shahrood River displayed the different responses to the natural-and human-induced environmental alternations by means of species composition, tolerance and diversity. In agreement with previous studies, the five macroinvertebrate based indices showed significant responses to water quality degradation (Karaouzas et al, 2011;Marzin et al, 2012;Munyika et al, 2014).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Pollution evaluation in the Shahrood River: Do physico-chemical and macroinvertebrate-based indices indicate same responses to anthropogenic activities?

et al. 2016

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This study evaluates the impact of anthropogenic activities on the Shahrood River using water physico-chemical variables and macroinvertebrates data sets obtained over a period of 12 months between February 2012 and February 2013 at 8 sampling sites. Biotic indices i.e. FBI and BMWP based on macroinvertebrates and physico-chemical indices (MPI, HPI and NSF-WQI) were employed to evaluate the water quality status in connection with natural- and human-induced pressures. Based on physico-chemical indices, water quality was categorized as low polluted level and it is suitable for drinking purposes. The water quality based on biotic indices was related to the anthropic activities; a clear deterioration of the water quality was observed from upstream to downstream sites. The water quality along the river changed from very good (class I; reference sites) to good (class II; midstream sites) and turned into moderate (class III) and poor (class IV) quality (downstream sites). These findings indicate that biotic indices are more powerful indicators in assessing water quality than physico-chemical indices. Allocapnia, Glossosoma and Hesperoperla were exclusively related to least disturbed sites, and Naididae, Orthocladiinae and Ecdyonurus were found in sites showing notable degradation. Our results recommended that the use of macroinvertebrates could be employed as a cost-effective tool for biomonitoring and controlling of polluted riverine ecosystems in the Middle East. Finally, the results from this study may be useful not only for developing countries, but also for any organization struggling to use macroinvertebrate based indices with restricted financial resources and knowledge.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Pollution evaluation in the Shahrood River: Do physico-chemical and macroinvertebrate-based indices indicate same responses to anthropogenic activities?

et al. 2016

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“…Ammonium-N and Nitrate-N naturally occur in water bodies as a result of the breakdown of organic and inorganic matter in water, excretion from biota and reduction of atmospheric nitrogen by microorganisms [52,53]. However, the application of fertiliser in the irrigated rice and vegetable farms downstream could explain the relatively high level of nutrients at these particular sites [5,10,54]. Decomposition of nitrogen-containing organic compounds such as plants and crops residuals is another potential source of contamination in the area, which could explain lower mean DO values downstream irrigation.…”

Section: Physical-chemical Properties Of Watermentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While the expansion from small-scale rain-fed farming to medium-and large-scale irrigation farming has contributed to global food security, it has often been associated with land and water problems [8]. Specifically, surface water and wet landscapes are susceptible to contamination from agricultural use of chemicals and fertilisers [7,9,10]. Given the role of surface waters in promoting healthy ecosystems and the direct impacts that land use shifts can have, there is need for rapid assessments to detect the With the current trends of shifting from small-scale to medium-and large-scale farming, it becomes crucial to protect natural and seminatural ecosystems from nonsustainable forms of human resource use.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Water Quality Across Irrigation Schemes: A Case Study of Wetland Agriculture Impacts in Kilombero Valley, Tanzania

Alavaisha

Lyon

Lindborg

2019

Water

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Coupled change in land and water use due to increased farming intensity is a main factor affecting water quality and quantity, ecological functions and biodiversity globally. Prolonging growing seasons and increasing productivity in wetlands through irrigation have been targeted for increasing food security, particularly in developing countries. Nevertheless, irrigation and drainage have often been associated with degradation of water quality through increased agrochemical and fertiliser runoff and leaching at local scales. In this study, we investigated water quality in streams used for irrigation in a wetland area in Kilombero Valley, Tanzania. We measured physical-chemical water parameters and collected macroinvertebrates with different sensitivity to water quality across several small irrigation schemes covering various conditions. Turbidity, temperature, nitrate-N, and ammonium-N were significantly higher at sampling sites downstream of irrigation compared to upstream. Macroinvertebrate diversity, richness and average score per taxa (ASPT) were higher in general in sampling sites upstream of irrigation, with more sensitive macroinvertebrates decreasing in abundance downstream. There was a positive correlation between physical-chemical parameters and macroinvertebrate indices across the sites. We demonstrate that macroinvertebrate indices can be used as a quick assessment of water quality in response to irrigation schemes in small-scale farming systems of Tanzania. This in turn can allow us to track changes affecting wetland ecosystem function and biodiversity at higher trophic levels and across larger scales, thereby providing useful early warnings to help avoid widespread degradation under widespread agricultural intensification.Water 2019, 11, 671 2 of 22 extent and magnitude of impacts of anthropogenic activity at small scales to support management decisions and avoid compounded impacts at larger scales.Usually, the main source of agricultural irrigation water in wet landscape environments comes from surface water. Because of spatial variation of water chemistry in wetlands, streams and rivers, assessment and monitoring programs are necessary to provide robust insights into the quality and quantity of surface water supplies [11][12][13]. Increased use of chemicals and excess draining of wetlands for agriculture and the associated irrigation can have impacts not only on aquatic ecosystem, but also on human health. Fertilisers and agrochemicals impact physical-chemical characteristics of surface water and biota at different spatial scales [7,14]. Excess nitrate-N in drinking water, for example, impacts young livestock, pregnant women and infants on a local scale [15]. Ammonia and phosphorous in excess cause unpleasant colour, taste and odour of water [6]. At larger scales, leaching of excess nutrients can cause overproduction, algal accumulation and decrease dissolved oxygen in aquatic and wetland environments [16,17]. When pollution goes beyond the self-purifying ability of wetland ecosystems, death of aqu...

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“…Munyika et al (2014) carried out a study along the Orange River in Namibia aimed at assessing the current water quality and overall health status of the Orange River in Namibia using the South African Scoring System 5 (SASS5) [47]. Gerhardt, (2000) notes that land use activities that have an effect on water quality and river health are believed to increase the pollution of water in most rivers [10].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biomonitoring of Mucheke and Shagashe Rivers in Masvingo, Zimbabwe Using Macro-Invertebrates as Indicators of Water Quality

Chikodzi¹,

Mabhegedhe²,

Tunha³

2017

GEP

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The traditional way of assessing water quality of water bodies is through measurement of biological, physical and chemical parameters. However, such assessments only reflect the concentration of pollutants at the time of sampling not periodic pollution events. The goal of the study was to evaluate the river health using the macro-invertebrates that are found within the Mucheke and Shagashe rivers of Masvingo City as water quality monitors. The South African Scoring System (SASS 5) was used to score using the sensitivity of macro-invertebrates to levels of pollution in the two river systems. The data collection process was carried in April 2017 at four sampling sites using the kick sampling method and results validated by testing the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of the water and comparing them with the macro-invertebrates score. Results showed that the mean sensitivity score of macro-invertebrates showed variations depending on the selected site. Sample sites B2 and A2 downstream of the two river systems show high levels pollution tolerant macro-invertebrates as compared to sites A1 and B1 that are on the upper course and have more of pollution sensitive macro-invertebrates. On validation, to a large extent the levels of pollution indicated by macro-invertebrates were found to be congruent to the levels of pollution indicated by the physical, chemical and biological parameters. The research concludes that the presence of specific types of macro-invertebrates can be used to assess the levels of pollution in Mucheke and Shagashe rivers of Masvingo City.

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River health assessment using macroinvertebrates and water quality parameters: A case of the Orange River in Namibia

Cited by 28 publications

References 10 publications

Pollution evaluation in the Shahrood River: Do physico-chemical and macroinvertebrate-based indices indicate same responses to anthropogenic activities?

Pollution evaluation in the Shahrood River: Do physico-chemical and macroinvertebrate-based indices indicate same responses to anthropogenic activities?

Assessment of Water Quality Across Irrigation Schemes: A Case Study of Wetland Agriculture Impacts in Kilombero Valley, Tanzania

Biomonitoring of Mucheke and Shagashe Rivers in Masvingo, Zimbabwe Using Macro-Invertebrates as Indicators of Water Quality

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