Using GIS for Assess the Groundwater Quality in Southwest Side of Basrah City

Abstract

In order to evaluate the quality of groundwater for drinking suitability purposes, a total of 27 groundwater samples from wells in southwest of Basrah city have been analyzed for various geochemical parameters. The aim of this research was to find the physicochemical quality of ground water in the southwest of Basrah. The results show that the quality of groundwater regarding the physical and chemical parameters of southern Basrah is unsuitable for drinking purposes. The total hardness (TH) was very high and it was in the ranged (740-6950) mg/l, also the electrical conductivity (EC) was very high and ranged (1720- 18030) μS/cm, while the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a value less than 100 mg/l for (TH) and 750µs/cm for (EC). According to the international and national standards the allowable concentration of total dissolved solids (TDS) should not exceed 500 mg/l, while the groundwater samples of the study area shows a range of (1200-10790) mg/l, therefore it is considered very high. Moreover, the other physicochemical properties of groundwater were analyzed and compared with those of drinking water standards recommended by the WHO. Groundwater for irrigation has been studied by using the rating of water samples in relation to salinity and sodium hazard graph. As a result of the study, only one sample was accepted for irrigation.