A Localized Assessment of Groundwater Quality Status Using GIS-Based Water Quality Index in Industrial Zone of Faisalabad, Pakistan

作者：Ahsan Saif Ullah, Haroon Rashid, Shahbaz Nasir Khan, Muhammad Umar Akbar, Arfan Arshad, Md Masudur Rahman, Shumaila Mustafa · 发表于：Water · 年份：2022 · DOI：10.3390/w14203342 · 被引用次数：19 · 研究领域：Groundwater and Isotope Geochemistry、Water Quality and Pollution Assessment、Groundwater and Watershed Analysis

Groundwater risks driven by population growth and industrialization in metropolitan cities have become a worldwide problem. Faisalabad is Pakistan’s third largest city with a population of more than 2 million and is renowned for its diverse industries. Many factories in the area dump their untreated effluent into nearby drainage systems, having a direct negative effect on the marine ecosystem. This research focuses on the Madhuana drain and Khurrianwala industrial region of Faisalabad to investigate groundwater quality status. Sixty water samples from groundwater bore wells and open wells were obtained, and all these samples were subjected to lab experiments for physical and chemical analysis. Sixteen physiochemical parameters, namely, electrical conductivity (EC), pH, total dissolved solids (TDS), total suspended solids (TSS), turbidity, carbonate, Ca2+, Fe, HCO3−, Cl−, Mg2+, SO24−, As, Cr, Cu, and Mn, were examined. To provide a comprehensive picture of water quality from a human perspective, we calculated the water quality index (WQI) by integrating 16 physiochemical criteria. The results revealed that a larger proportion had poor drinking quality due to direct releases of toxins by industries. It was observed that 87% of the water samples showed an unsuitable status of groundwater for drinking purposes in terms of pH, EC, Fe, Mn, Cu, and Cr. The results of this study could be used to build and construct wastewater treatment plant facilities for the Madhuana drain, reducin...