Evaluation of the physicochemical and bacteriological quality of the Loukkos wetlands complex (Morocco)

Abstract

The estuary of the Loukkos River is a complex ecosystem where various factors affect the quality of water. Our study is assessing the degree of water pollution in the complex of the lower Loukkos wetland’s surface water, which is situated at the river mouth of the Loukkos river in the eastern periphery of Larache city. To realize this objective, we collected water samplings from five area sites during summer period from May to August 2016 to analyse eight parameters physicochemical including dissolved oxygen (DO), temperature, pH, electrical conductivity, turbidity, salinity, suspended matter and nitrates. This study was accompanied by a bacteriological analysis relating to the enumeration of total coliforms and faecal coliforms, intestinal enterococci and reducing anaerobic sulphites. The analysis’s results shed lights on factors of contamination and collaborate to the physicochemical evaluation and bacteriologic quality of surface water. The quality indicators spatialization reveals interactions between the various phenomena acting on the functions of this Ramsar site.

Assessment of Primary Production in an Estuarine Environment: The Case of the Oum Er Rbia Estuary (Atlantic Coast, Morocco)

“…Correlation coefficients (r) and probable errors (PE) for GPP, NPP and R with environmental parameters by season in the Oum Er Rbia estuary during the study period At high tide, mean conductivity values in the Loukkos estuary fluctuate from 0.79 mS/cm to 52.70 mS/cm, while at low tide, mean values fluctuate from 2.97 mS/cm to 33.62 mS/cm (ElMorhit et al, 2012) and appear to follow an increasing gradient from upstream to downstream, with a minimum of 0.5 mS/cm and a maximum of 69.75 mS/cm(Fathi et al, 2021). Along the Bouregreg estuary, the average electrical conductivity values recorded show a decreasing gradient from downstream to upstream ranging from 4870 μS/cm to 451 μS/cm(Zerki et al., 2011) and from 27 mS/cm to 7.90 mS/cm (El Harim et al, 2021) due to the distance from marine influences and dilution by freshwater inputs.…”