2008–2017 Bogota River Water Quality Assessment Based on the Water Quality Index

Abstract

This article provides a deep analysis of the water quality at the upper basin of the Bogota River (Colombia) between 2008 and 2017. The Water Quality Index has been the indicator employed to determine the ecological status of the river. This index was chosen in order to normalize the analysis, given that it is commonly used by the Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies, a government agency of the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development of Colombia, to determine the state of surface effluents. The results obtained were organized in a double-entry matrix in order to relate the variables of the sample period and the sampling station. The research revealed an insufficient quality of water, demonstrating that the high stretch of the Bogota River basin has, in general, regular or acceptable water quality, while only five stations showed an acceptable status. Surprisingly, the stations located close to the wastewater treatment plants of the municipalities of Choconta, Suesca, Gachancipa, and Tocancipa, as well as Rio Negro, have a poor water quality, discharging a high load of contaminants into the river. Although great efforts have been made by Colombian authorities to restore the critical state of the majority of their aquatic ecosystems, recent implementation of policies and instruments have not shown significant achievements yet. For this reason, this study aims to present a powerful decision-tool for the monitoring and evaluation of correction measures implemented on this river basin. The data used in this research were provided by the Regional Autonomous Corporation of Cundinamarca.

Emerging Contaminants: Analysis, Aquatic Compartments and Water Pollution

“…Colombia, like most countries in the World, is not immune to the problem of emerging compounds and Colombian developing regions are concerned (Martínez Vidal et al 2006;Barceló and Petrovic 2008;Ibáñez et al 2008Ibáñez et al , 2009Klamerth et al 2009;Teijón et al 2010;Tobón-Marulanda et al 2010;Gil et al 2012;Díaz-Casallas et al 2019;Reichert et al 2019). As in many other developing countries, Colombia's indiscriminate industrial growth has led to severe pollution of its waterbodies.…”

“…Once entered into the environment, chemicals and their metabolites can produce subtle effects on aquatic and terrestrial organisms, especially on the former since they are exposed to long-term continuous influx of wastewater effluents. Recently, Díaz-Casallas et al (2019) proposed a comprehensive analysis of the water quality at the upper basin of the Bogotá River between 2008 and 2017, pointing out an insufficient quality of water. This study highlighted the necessity for further efforts on the continuous monitoring of Colombian rivers basins.…”

“…Indeed, population growth, agricultural intensification, rapid urbanization, increased industrial production and climate change are beginning to impact on Nature's ability to provide safe and clean water for our essential uses and functions. One of the most important global environmental problems is water pollution by chemicals (Aristizabal-Ciro et al 2017;Hernández-Padilla et al 2017;Morin-Crini and Crini 2017;Botero-Coy et al 2018;Crini and Lichtfouse 2018;Dong et al 2018;Díaz-Casallas et al 2019;Gallego-Schmid and Tarpani 2019;Kumar et al 2019;Reichert et al 2019;Deviller et al 2020). We are all concerned about this problem and the anthropogenic sources are well-know, namely domestic discharges, hospital effluents, industrial wastewaters, runoff from agriculture, livestock and aquaculture, and landfill leachates.…”

Status and changes of water quality in typical near-city zones of three East African Great Lakes in Tanzania

“…Water quality deterioration of inland freshwater bodies is one of the main ecological and environmental challenges that has been faced by developing countries for decades. This undesirable phenomenon is evident in many areas from Latin America to Asia and Africa (Basturk 2019;Diaz-Casallas et al 2019;Gradilla-Hernandez et al 2020;Lopes et al 2020;Luyiga et al 2015). Increasing pollution in freshwater systems in less-developed regions such as Africa poses risks to public health, food security, and biodiversity (UN-Water 2016).…”

Comparative Analysis of Water Quality Indices and Their Relationship with Anthropogenic Activities. Case Study: Bogotá River

“…Various authors have formulated quality indices according to the permissible limits in the environmental standard, the criteria for the specific use of water and its potential, and a reduced number of parameters with significance that generate information on the change in water quality and its impact (Lozada et al, 2009). Díaz et al (Díaz-Casallas et al, 2019) used the information from 29 monitoring stations for the period 2008-2017 with records for five parameters (Dissolved oxygen, total suspended solids, chemical oxygen demand, Electrical conductivity, and pH). In the Castro et al report (Castro Fernández et al, 2015), information for 2008 -2015 was collected for the same five parameters listed above.…”