Spatial-Temporal Variations of Water Quality Parameters and Its Health Risks Assessment

Abstract

The current study is an examination of the spatial and temporal changes in water quality parameters and assessment of the corresponding risk on human health in the regions affected by industrial, agricultural and residential activities. Water samples have been taken in three seasons, pre-monsoon, monsoon, and post-monsoon and analyzed in terms of physicochemical parameters and heavy metals according to the standards of APHA (2017). When GIS was used in spatial interpolation, there was the determination of the major contamination hotspots especially in industrial and agricultural areas. The findings of the Water Quality Index (WQI) showed that a large percentage of samples were in poor to very poor categories, which showed that the quality of water was generally degraded. The use of the USEPA models in human health risk assessment showed that heavy metals, including Pb, Cd, Cr, and As, were non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic and therefore had a greater risk to children whose values were often too high to be acceptable. The paper highlights the importance of systematic monitoring, regulatory interventions and sustainable water management practices to reduce the health risks and the need to protect the water resources.