Suitability of Groundwater in Basrah Province for Industrial, Construction and Agricultural Purposes

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  Ammar S. Dawood   |      Abdul Hussain A. Abbas   |      Zainab M. Alhasan   |   

This study aims to evaluate the quality of groundwater samples in the south of Basrah Province for industrial, construction, and agricultural purposes. Groundwater samples were collected in the summer season of the year 2015 from (29) wells located in different districts in Basrah province (Safwan, Zubair, and Um-Qasir). The groundwater samples were analyzed for pH, electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), and other major ions. The chemical results indicate that the groundwater in the study area was unsuitable for industrial uses according to standard classification. Some other standard classification recommended that the unsuitable groundwater could be used after treatment of some of its elements while groundwater in the study area may be used for construction purposes with the suitable treatment of high ions concentration. After studying the factors that determine the suitability of groundwater for irrigation purposes such as pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, Sodium ratio(Na%), and sodium adsorption ratio (SAR). The groundwater in the study area can be classified based on (EC) values, as unacceptable for irrigation except for very salt-tolerant plants and excellent drainage. According to other parameters like Na% and SAR, groundwater of the study area is classified as poor to very poor water and needs suitable treatment before using it.