Journal Article

Deployment of entropy information theory in the Indian Sundarban region using hydrogeochemical parameters and GIS for assessment of irrigation suitability

Hasan, Mohd Sayeed Ul, Molla, Sabir Hossain, Rukhsana

2023

Overview

The evaluation of irrigation suitability plays a crucial role for the socio-economic development of the society, especially in the region of Sundarban. For sustainable agricultural practices, groundwater quality must be suitable for irrigation; otherwise, it can degrade soil and diminish crop yield. The entropy information theory, several irrigational indices, multivariate statistics, GIS, and geostatistics are used in this work to evaluate the geographical distribution and quality of groundwater in the Indian Sundarban region. In total, 33 groundwater samples were collected in 2018 (April and May), and they were evaluated for major cations, anions, as well as other parameters like electrical conductivity (EC), soluble sodium percentage (SSP), potential salinity (PS), total dissolved solids (TDS), Kelly ratio (KR), sodium absorption ratio (SAR), permeability index (PI), residual sodium carbonate (RSC), magnesium hazard (MH), and residual sodium bicarbonate (RSBC). The overall trend of the principal cations and anions is in the sequence of Na +  ≥ Mg 2+  ≥ Ca 2+  ≥ K 2+ and HCO 3 −  ≥ Cl −  ≥ NO 3 −  ≥ SO 4 2−  ≥ F − , respectively, whereas the spatial variation of %Na, SAR, RSBC, and MH demonstrate very poor irrigation water quality, and spatial variation of KR, RSC, SSP, PI, and PS signifies that the irrigation water quality is excellent to good. In order to identify the specific association and potential source of the dissolved chemical in the groundwater, statistical techniques like correlation and principal component analysis were also employed. The hydrochemical facies indicates that mixed type makes up the bulk (51.51%) of the water samples. Following the Wilcox plot, more than 75% of the water samples are good to doubtful; however, by the US salinity hazard map, roughly 60.60% of the samples had high salinity (C3-S1 zone). The EWQII reports that no samples fall into the very good (no restriction) category, whereas 30.30%, 30.30%, and 39.40% of the sample wells record good (low restriction), average (moderate restriction), and poor (severe restriction) irrigation water quality, respectively. Based on this study, the bulk of the groundwater samples taken from the study area are unsuitable for cultivation. The findings of this study will also help decision-makers develop adequate future plans for irrigation and groundwater resource management.

• Publisher: Springer International Publishing,Springer Nature B.V
• Subject: absorption / Agricultural practices / Agricultural production / Agriculture / Anions / Aquifers / Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution / Bicarbonates / Bulk sampling / calcium / Calcium ions / Carbonates / Cations / Crop yield / decision making / Dissolved chemicals / Dissolved solids / Earth and Environmental Science / Ecology / Economic development / Ecotoxicology / Electrical conductivity / Electrical resistivity / Entropy / Entropy (Information theory) / Environment / Environmental Management / Environmental monitoring / Geographic information systems / Geographical distribution / Geographical information systems / Geostatistics / Groundwater / Groundwater irrigation / Groundwater management / Groundwater quality / Groundwater resources / Hydrochemicals / Hydrogeochemistry / Information theory / Irrigation / Irrigation water / Irrigation water quality / Magnesium / mathematical theory / Monitoring/Environmental Analysis / Multivariate analysis / Parameters / Permeability / principal component analysis / Principal components analysis / Resource management / Salinity / Salinity effects / Socioeconomic aspects / socioeconomic development / Sodium / Sodium bicarbonate / Sodium carbonate / soil / Soil degradation / Spatial variations / Statistical analysis / Sustainable agriculture / Sustainable practices / Total dissolved solids / Water analysis / Water quality / Water resources / Water sampling