Evaluating the Impact of Seasonal Variability on Groundwater Quality using Multivariate Analysis of Variance

Groundwater which constitutes high percent of the global fresh water is one of the most important sources of drinking water. When polluted, groundwater has deleterious effects on its users. Consequently, the quality and pollution of groundwater is a health concern in the world. The focus of the study is to evaluate the impact of seasonal variation on the quality of groundwater within the study areaHundred (100) boreholes spread to cover the study area were sampled. The water samples were analyzed using standard procedures for assessing drinking water qualities in order to determine the condition of groundwater quality within the study area. Statistical analysis of the groundwater quality data was done using weighted average index method to determine the water quality index and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) to assess the impact of seasonal variation. Result of multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) which was employed to assess the presence of seasonal variability revealed that the calculated partial Eta squared of the Pillai’s trace statistics was 1.00 which indicates 100% variability among the dependent variables occasioned by seasonal change. Keywords: Multivariate statistics, Seasonal variation, Water quality index, Pillai’s trace statistics and Partial Eta squared. DOI : 10.7176/CMR/11-10-05 Publication date: December 31 st 2019