Abstract
The groundwater quality of the Upper Pearl River Watershed (UPRW) and surface water quality of the basin’s outlet, Ross Barnett Reservoir (RBR), are critically important because of growing demands for drinking, agriculture, and industrial use in the region. To identify factors affecting water quality and characterize the surface water outlet and the watershed’s groundwater, geochemical and statistical analyses were performed using results from various hydrogeochemical parameters. Based on surface geology, groundwater samples analyzed (n = 51) within the watershed were partitioned into three recharge zones: North, Mid, and South. Precipitation and rock-water interactions were identified to dominantly influence the groundwater chemistry in the region. The chemistry of the surface water samples (n = 9), on the other hand, was influenced more by precipitation with minor contribution from the proximal aquifer system. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that two groundwater recharge zones and RBR samples exhibited significant clustering. The groundwater had a complex array of parameters influencing its chemistry owing to diverse properties, including Na, Ca, Mg, alkalinity, and conductivity. Comparing land use at the sub-watershed level with the water quality parameters showed that agriculture and development could have contributed nitrate, especially to the groundwater in the south zone. However, a general lack of distinct relationship between land use and water quality, along with detection of excess nitrate in select wells suggested that the water in the region was likely affected by point sources, such as poultry farms. The research recommends evaluating point sources of pollution to cater to future water management in the region.
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source for Na may likely include weathering of silicate minerals in the aquifer (a); calcite, dolomite, and gypsum dissolution processes could be occurring, but are limited (b, c); and excess alkalinity was balanced by alkalis (d)
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Acknowledgements
The authors extend their sincere appreciation to the following generous people for allowing us to collect the groundwater and Ross Barnett Reservoir samples: Mr. Wayne Smith, NW Kemper Water Association; Mr. Glen Goldman and Mr. Wesley Spears, Central MS Water; Mr. Mike Snow; Mr. Wayne Greene, Louisville Utilities; Mr. Rick Vowell, Choctaw Water Association; Mr. Les Clarke, Kosciusko Light and Water; Mr. Richard Pope, H and H Water Association; Mr. David Langford, Lena Water Association; Mr. Terryl Hobby, Pelahatchie, Morton, and Forest Water Associates; Mr. Dale Edgar, North Leak County well operations; Mr. Mike McCullum and Mr. Mark McMannus, Town of Ridgeland Water Association; Mr. Matt Reed, City of Madison Water Association; Mr. Andy Boyd of Pisgah and Fannin Water Associates; Langford Water Association, Brandon, Mississippi; and Mr. Steve Clarke, the Pearl River Valley Water Supply District. Finally, we acknowledge the input and guidance of Dr. Darrel Schmitz, Professor (Retd.), Mississippi State University.
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Financial support is provided by the Office of Research and Economic Development and College of Arts and Sciences at Mississippi State University.
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Paul, V., Vattikuti, S., Dash, P. et al. Evaluating hydrogeochemical characteristics of groundwater and surface water in the Upper Pearl River Watershed, USA. Environ Monit Assess 193, 296 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-021-09045-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-021-09045-7