Major Ion Chemistry of the Groundwater under Jhenaidah District of Bangladesh for Irrigation, Drinking and Industrial Uses

Aims: The study was carried out to determine the baseline cation and anion concentrations of the groundwater of Kaliganj Upazila of Jhenaidah district of Bangladesh and to evaluate the suitability of these water sources for irrigation, drinking and industrial uses.

Study Design: The research was carried out in laboratory and field.

Place and Duration of Study: Samples of water were collected from Kaliganj Upazila of Jhenaidah district during July-September 2013.

Methodology: A total of 45 groundwater (6 deep tube-wells, 19 shallow tube-wells, 20 hand tube-wells) samples were collected from existing wells in the study areas. The collected water samples were carried to the laboratory of the Department of Agricultural Chemistry, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University, Dinajpur, Bangladesh for testing. The samples were analyzed as quickly as possible on arrival at the laboratory. All reagents were analytical grade. For SO42- and PO4-, samples were refrigerated and analyzed within 24 hrs.

Results: The pH values indicated that the waters were mostly acidic in nature. Among the chemical budget of ions, magnesium and chloride were found to be the most predominant ions. The average amount of Ca, Na, K and HCO3- were safe for crop production. The mean values of TDS and SAR indicated the excellent category for irrigation. Based on SSP all waters were excellent classes. In respect to hardness, water was moderately hard to very hard classes. Based on the total hardness, most ground waters were moderately hard. All waters were free from RSC and belong to the suitable category. Most of the major ionic constituents were detected below the acceptable level for drinking. All water samples are more or less suitable for industrial uses. Other micronutrients like Fe, Zn, Mn, Cu and Cl were within the safe limit for irrigating agricultural crops. Iron and Mn exceeded the drinking standard in some waters.

Conclusion: All water samples are more or less suitable for industries like brewery, ice manufacture purpose, dairy farm and carbonate beverage. But almost all waters were unsuitable for textile and laundering. All waters were suitable for drinking and irrigation uses; although some samples were rated to be unsuitable for some specific ions.