Deciphering geochemical indicators controlling the fossil groundwater quality in some localities, western desert, Egypt
摘要
Groundwater's geochemical indicators significantly impact its appropriateness for drinking, residential, or agricultural use. In this research, the environmental isotope technique was integrated with geochemical and radiological techniques with traditional hydrogeology, to clarify the main controlling factors that affect the behaviour of chemical and radiological components and their effects on ecological system. This paper is aligned with the SDGs in arid regions that strictly call for clean water supply water human being and protecting the environmental component including the human health and sustaining the dependant human activities. Statistical data modelling and geochemical modelling were employed to classify and describe the inferred dominant geochemical processes that controlling the water quality in the study area. Geochemical modelling results show that the majority of samples are affected by congruent dissolution of calcite, dolomite, gypsum and halite revealing continues tendency of dissolution of terrestrial salts and their effect on water salinity and its effect on natural radioactivity mobilization from the rocks. On the other hand, reverse cationic exchange on the surface of the clay beds in the aquifer composition and absence of meteoric water component reflecting higher stage of mineralization where dissolution processes are common with the rock composition. The spatial distribution of water quality for irrigation based on chemical constitutes ranged from unfit to excellent water and the quality categorized from good to excellent at north western zone of the study area. Accordingly, more attention should be paid towards improving the quality of underground water for either drinking or irrigation purposes. This work is believed to be helpful in establishing new policy for regulating and preserving available water resources from anthropogenic activities in arid regions to ensure their sustainability.