Journal Article

Assessment of potentially toxic elements in groundwater through interpolation, pollution indices, and chemometric techniques in Dehradun in Uttarakhand State

Prasad Uniyal, Devi, Pant, Gaurav, Kumar, Avinash, Matta, Gagan, Nayak, Anjali, Kumar, Pawan

2024

Overview

Providing safe drinking water for the entire world’s population is essential for ensuring sustainable development. The presence of harmful compounds in aquifers, majorly toxic elements, is a serious environmental concern around the globe. This research aimed to quantify for the initial period the amounts of toxic elements in freshwater in the Dehradun Industrial Region of Uttrakhand, India, as well as the associated health risks. The PTEs (potentially toxic elements) Fe, Cd, Mn, Cu, Cr and Pb, Zn, Ni is measured by AAS and compared to BIS and WHO requirements for drinking safety. The order of mean trace element values in all groundwater samples were determined as Fe > Zn > Cu > Ni > Co > Cd > Pb. HPI was discovered to be higher than high class during the research period (HPI > 30), but under the severe contamination criterion of 100. Iron’s MI and PI values were consistently over the threshold limit during the research period, and certain toxic elements were discovered exceptionally near the threshold limit, indicating a severe future influence on groundwater quality. According to PCA (principal component analysis), CM (correlation matrix), and potential health hazard, maximum levels of toxic elements in groundwater in the Dehradun region are attributed to land use patterns, anthropogenic activity, industrial activity, fertilizer and pesticide leaching, and residential waste into the aquifer system. The findings of this study could aid local planners and policymakers in preventing health risks from contaminated aquifers through the deployment of suitable monitoring and mitigation measures.

• Publisher: Springer Berlin Heidelberg,Springer Nature B.V
• Subject: anthropogenic activities / Anthropogenic factors / Aquatic Pollution / Aquifer systems / Aquifers / Cadmium / chemometrics / class / Contamination / Copper / Correlation analysis / Drinking water / Earth and Environmental Science / Ecotoxicology / Environment / Environmental Chemistry / Environmental Health / Environmental Monitoring / Environmental perception / fertilizers / freshwater / Groundwater / Groundwater - chemistry / Groundwater quality / Health hazards / Health risk assessment / Health risks / Human influences / India / Industrial areas / Iron / Land use / Leaching / Lead / Metals, Heavy - analysis / Nickel / Pesticides / pollution / Pollution index / principal component analysis / Principal components analysis / Soil and Water Health in Developing Countries: Prime Concern for Attainment of Sustainable Development Goals / Sustainable development / Toxic hazards / toxicity / Trace elements / Trace Elements - analysis / Waste Water Technology / wastes / Water analysis / Water Management / Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis / Water Pollution Control / Water quality / Water sampling / Zinc