Physicochemical water quality index, a management tool for tropical-flooding lagoons. We propose ICA-L, a wetland physicochemical water quality index (WWQI), to be used as a management tool for seasonal-flooding lagoons in Palo verde National Park, Guanacaste, Costa Rica. The goal is to preserve their natural role for native plants as well as migrants and local animal species. The index was developed in four steps: parameter selection, assignment of parameter weight, transformation of data to their corresponding sub indices and selection of an appropriate aggregation function. In this process, the following criteria were used as a reference: WQI from the National Sanitation Foundation, WQI for the Des Moines River, Escribano and De Frutos WQI, the international legislation on maximum acceptable concentration for different water quality variables, and the authors' personal criteria. The index includes the following parameters: dissolved oxygen percent saturation, pH, nitrate concentration, total phosphorus concentration, chemical oxygen demand, concentration of suspended solids, electrical conductivity and temperature. The index sets itself to zero if the concentration of some toxic substance exceeds the maximum allowed limit. The adjustment values were based on "weights" defined in the National Sanitation Foundation Water quality Index (ICA-NSF). In this study, the weight of fecal coliforms count was excluded, the values of turbidity and the one for total solids were integrated into one (suspended solids) and a factor of 0.08 was assigned to the conductivity parameter. The sub indices associated to suspended solids were obtained from the quality of Kahler-Royer variation graph; the values for pH and the nitrate concentration from the graphs constructed for ICA-NSF. The percentage of dissolved oxygen saturation, in sites like irrigation channels, was evaluated directly from the quality variation graph constructed for ICA-NSF, whereas the same parameter for the flooding lagoons required an adjustment based on the optimal value for similar non contaminated ecosystems. The conductivity was evaluated from adjustments in the qualification functions commented by Escribano & De Frutos. Chemical oxygen demand, total phosphorus and temperature, were qualified based on the functions developed for the ICA-L.

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RESUMENCalidad del agua del Refugio Mata Redonda y los arrozales colindantes, Guanacaste, Costa Rica. El objetivo de este trabajo fue evaluar si el agua de la laguna Mata Redonda (LMR) y de la actividad arrocera en el sector San Lázaro (SSL) de Nicoya, es apropiada para el sostenimiento de la biodiversidad y el desarrollo de la vida acuática. El análisis de la calidad fisicoquímica del agua se llevó a cabo mediante el índice de calidad de agua para el manejo de lagunas de inundación (ICA-L) a partir de datos de temperatura, pH, porcentaje de saturación de oxígeno, conductividad eléctrica, demanda bioquímica de oxígeno, sólidos suspendidos, nitratos y fósforo total. El ICA-L promedio del agua que drenó de los arrozales por el canal principal, (ICA-Lp) fue 42, correspondiente a la categoría "mala" (no apta para el sostenimiento de la biodiversidad de lagunas de inundación). En la LMR (ICA-Lp 80) y en la salida de la laguna (ICA-Lp 81) la calidad del agua se clasificó como "buena". No obstante incrementos en la concentración de fósforo total y en la demanda biológica de oxígeno (DBO) conducirían a un deterioro del ecosistema. El nivel de riesgo de los plaguicidas aplicados a los arrozales durante el período en estudio, bajo las condiciones del SSL, fue estimado mediante el Pesticide Index Rating Impact (PIRI); los resultados mostraron que la deltametrina, esfenvalerato, permetrina y butaclor, por su alta toxicidad y movilidad, serían los menos apropiados de aplicar. En tanto que, imidapropid, bispiribac-Na, triazofos, glifosato, acefato, clomazone y tricopyr, resultarían poco peligrosos bajo prácticas de aplicación apropiadas.Palabras clave: calidad del agua, arroz, plaguicidas en arrozales, plaguicidas en humedales. ABSTRACTWater quality of the Refugio Mata Redonda and surrounding rice paddies, Guanacaste, Costa Rica. The objective of this study was assess if the water quality from the Mata Redonda lagoon (MRL) and from the rice fields in San Lazaro sector of Nicoya, is appropriate for biodiversity and aquatic life development. The water quality analysis was carried out using the Water quality index for managing flood lagoons (ICA-L), which is based on the following data: temperature, pH, oxygen saturation percentage, electrical conductivity, biochemical oxygen demand, suspended solids, nitrate content and total phosphorus content. The ICA-L average (ICA-Lp) from the water drained form the rice fields in the main channel was 42, which corresponds to a ¨bad¨ category value (unfit for sustaining biodiversity in flood lagoons). In the MRL (ICA-Lp 80) and in the lagoon´s drainage (ICA-Lp 81), water quality was classified as "good". Nevertheless, increases in total phosphorus and the biological oxygen demand (BOD) may cause negative changes in the composition of the ecosystem. The risk level associated with pesticide application in rice fields (under the San Lazaro area conditions during the study period) was estimated using the Pesticide Impact Rating Index (PIRI). The PIRI results showed that the less appropriate to ...

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