A Sustainable Approach To Groundwater Management & Contamination Prevention
Sindh Industrial and Trading Estate (S.I.T.E.) town is an Industrial Hub. It is lying over recently deposited alluvium of quaternary age and other three formations including Manchar, Gaj and Nari formation. More than 60% of the resident of S.I.T.E area are largely dependent on the groundwater for their basic requirements.
Twenty-four groundwater samples were collected from the study area from different Union councils of S.I.T.E at a depth of about 100-150 feet, mostly from boring and few from the dug wells. The result of the analyses revealed that the groundwater samples are highly saline which associated with high TDS (6474ppm) which is 12 times greater than WHO Standard for TDS i.e 500 ppm. All the samples have high concentration of Ca(1848 mg/L), K(29.04 mg/L), Cl(4807.1 mg/L), Na(544.83 mg/L), Mg(532.69 mg/L), SO4 (2283.58 mg/L), Zn(384.71 pbb) and NO3 (92.2 mg/L) which exceeds the prescribed limit of World Health Organization. The major hydrofacies found in the groundwater of the S.I.T.E area are Ca-HCO3 and CaCl.
Data revealed that the quality of groundwater is mainly influenced by release of untreated municipal and industrial effluents into water-bodies which adversely affecting the quality of water. Discharge of domestic waste, Industrialization, population growth, radioactive waste, fertilizers, excessive use of pesticides and leakage from water tanks are major sources of water pollution. Spatial analysis exposed that Metrovile is the union council in S.I.T.E with high concentration of Sodium, Chlorine, Calcium, Potassium, Sulfate magnesium and slight high concentration of Zince are present in ground water.
Slum areas such as Qasba colony and Islamia colony are the areas with high abundance of Sodium, Bi-carbonate, Nitrate, Zinc. The WHO reports that 80% diseases are waterborne. Bacterial, biological and parasitic diseases such as hepatitis, skin infection cholera, typhoid, encephalitis, poliomyelitis, and gastrointestinal are spreading through contaminated water. It is recommended to inspect the water quality on regular basis to evade its destructive effects on human health.
It is concluded that, the presence of industrial activity can release heavy metals into the environment. Sampling and analysis activities are needed to confirm where heavy metals have likely been released to ensure that drinking water supplies are safe for human consumption. The results indicate that S.I.T.E is currently suffering from groundwater pollution which is essentially caused by untreated domestic and industrial wastewater. As the city continues to develop, there seems not be an adequate plan to contain the spread and hazards of pollution, within the water bodies.
This study offers the requisite information for the authority to pursue a sustainable approach to groundwater management and contamination prevention. Tube wells, water filtration plants, and other drinking water sources should be installed in a safety place to facilitate the people of S.I.T.E. A proper planning and management is required to ease the problem of drinking water contamination in the study area.
