Multivariate Analysis for Assessment of Vamsadhara River Water Quality, Andhra Pradesh, India

Abstract

Vamsadhara is a prominent river in north-western Andhra Pradesh. Without enough and reliable knowledge on the quality of the water, people utilize it for home and agricultural purposes quite a lot. This study aims to evaluate the quality of river water for agricultural and domestic consumption. Water samples from 10 sampling stations were collected during the pre and post-monsoon seasons of 2021, and the water quality index and agricultural indices were computed. The Water Quality Index was found to be satisfactory in both the seasons. Correlation and regression analyses are performed to understand the relationship between various hydrochemical parameters. The pre-season and post-season principal components were found to explain 81.3% and 78.9% of the total variance, respectively. The variables in both seasons are solely hydro-chemical and are believed to result from geological processes, suggesting geogenic sources. Water quality parameters for irrigation are within the limits. In irrigated soils, a higher growth of exchangeable Na is typically encouraged by elevated Mg levels. Water with a magnesium hazard level below fifty is considered suitable for irrigation. The Mg hazard was slightly excessive in most of the examined locations of the Vamsadhara River. The river water quality for irrigation is good to excellent, with exemptions from MH. Prioritizing effective sewage water treatment facilities before release into rivers.