Assessment of potability of minewater pumped out from Jharia Coalfield, India: an integrated approach using integrated water quality index, heavy metal pollution index, and multivariate statistics

Abstract

The dense and industrialized populace in the mining areas of Jharia Coal eld (JCF) is plagued by a severe shortage of water supply. The unutilized pumped out coal minewater discharges may be utilized to cater to the increasing water demand of the region but it runs the risk of getting contaminated from domestic and industrial e uents. The current study aimed to assess the suitableness of augmenting underground minewater for potable purposes. Minewater samples collected from 15 locations (minewater treatment plants) across JCF for the hydrological year 2019-2020 were analysed to gain an insight on the physico-chemical characteristics of the minewater using an integrated approach of standard hydrochemical methods, Integrated Water Quality Index (IWQI), Heavy metal Pollution Index (HPI) and Multivariate Statistical Analysis. The integrated approach gives a holistic assessment of the minewater quality, overcoming the limitations of traditional water quality indices, to give a more accurate assessment. The analysis of minewater in the region identi ed Ca-Mg-HCO 3 and Ca-Mg-Cl-SO 4 as the two major water types. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) of the minewater revealed the in uence of lithogenic and anthropogenic processes in modulating the water chemistry of the region. This study could facilitate effective water quality management practices while also laying the foundation for augmenting minewater for potable purposes to meet increasing demands.

Microbially mediated synthesis of vivianite by Desulfosporosinus on the way to phosphorus recovery

“…While water discharged during mining operations holds promise as a valuable resource, it remains susceptible to contamination from domestic and industrial wastewater. 2 Conventional environmental engineering technologies, such as articial wetland treatment systems, [3][4][5][6] offer a solution. Constructed wetlands leverage natural microbial, biological, physical, and chemical processes to treat wastewater at minimal nancial cost.…”

Seasonal Analysis of Shallow Groundwater Using Multivariate Statistics in a Semiarid Basin, Northern Nigeria

“…Thus, seasonal and multivariate statistical analyses are theoretically capable approaches for addressing groundwater quality complications in semiarid environments. It offers an unbiased method to measure the observed strengths of a particular process(s) that involves simultaneous transformations of numerous shallow groundwater quality parameters [29][30][31][32][33].…”