Hydro-geochemistry-based appraisal of summer-season groundwater from three different semi-arid basins of northeast Mexico for drinking and irrigation
Résumé
Summer-season groundwater from three agricultural basins (i.e., El Potosi, Sandia and Cieneguilla) in drought-prone northeast
Mexico was assessed for drinking and irrigation by evaluating their physicochemical parameters with respect to the
World Health Organization Guidelines for drinking water quality (WHO, Geneva, 2011) standards, and by estimating water
quality indices (DWQI and IWQI). Facies of Ca–Mg–HCO3, Ca–Mg–Cl and Ca–Mg–SO4 mostly reflected the influences
of aquifer lithologies. Ca exceeded WHO (2011) maximum allowable limit in most of the samples due to dissolution of
gypsum-bearing limestone. Most of the samples (69–93%) were in excellent and good categories (DWQI < 100) for drinking
and the samples of poor to very poor categories (7–31%) had salinity above the recommendation of WHO (2011). Fluoride of
> 1.5 mg/L in 13% samples from the El Potosi Basin could expose some population to dental and skeletal fluorosis. Similarly,
nitrate (> 42 mg/L), mostly from synthetic fertilizers, in 13% samples of the Sandia Basin might affect human health through
methemoglobinemia in infants. In the context of irrigation suitability, the samples with > 75% permeability in the Donnen
classification are good for irrigation. US Regional Salinity Laboratory classification, however, grouped most groundwater
the from El Potosi Basin (medium-salinity hazard) as suitable for irrigation, whereas most samples from the Cieneguilla
Basin and half of the samples from Sandia Basin (high-salinity hazard) should only be used to irrigate salt-tolerant plants
with enhanced drainage condition. IWQI values also suggested that most samples (low-restriction category) are suitable
only for irrigating light texture and moderately permeable soils. The groundwater management in this region should involve.