Author : G.Sunpriya Achary

A study has been carried out in Bhubaneswar city, Odisha, India, to ascertain the causes for the origin and distribution of iron content in the ground waters. Ground water samples were collected quarterly for two consecutive years and analyzed for iron content. The iron content ranges from 0.32 to 7.7 mg/l. A comparison of ground water data with rock and soil chemistry suggests that the concentration of iron in the ground water is derived from the rock and soils due to geogenic processes. This concentration is taken as a natural occurrence of iron in the groundwater of the study area for assessing the causes for its next higher content. Relatively higher concentration of iron is observed in some samples where the wells are located nearby municipality waste waters, indicating the impact of anthropogenic activities on the ground water system. These activities mask the concentration of iron caused by geogenic origin. Hence, both the geogenic and anthropogenic activities degrade the ground water quality. Drinking water standards indicate that the iron content in all the ground water samples exceeds the permissible limit (0.3 mg/l) recommended for drinking purpose causing the health disorders. Necessity of close monitoring of ground water quality for assessing the impact of geogenic and anthropogenic sources with reference to land use and land cover activities is emphasized on the present study area to protect the ground water resources from the pollution.

Keywords: Ground Water Pollution, Iron Content etc.

Article published in International Journal of Current  Engineering  and Technology, Vol.4,No.1 (Feb- 2014)