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Geochemical processes, salinity sources and utility characterization of groundwater in a semi-arid region of Iraq through geostatistical and isotopic techniques

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Abstract

Identifying factors contributing to water salinity is paramount in efficiently managing limited water resources in arid environments. The primary objective of this study is to enhance understanding regarding the hydrochemistry, source, and mechanism of water salinity, as well as to assess the suitability of water for various uses in southern Iraq. The groundwater samples were collected from water wells and springs and analyzed for major cations and anions along with stable isotopes (δ18O and δ2H) to accomplish the objective. The analysis of major ion chemistry, hydrochemical techniques, principal component analysis (PCA), and isotope signatures were adopted to determine the primary factors contributing to water mineralization. The study inferred that evaporation and geological processes encompassing water–rock interactions, such as dissolution precipitation and ion exchange, were key processes. The stable isotope analysis revealed that the water originated from meteoric sources and underwent significant evaporation during or before infiltration. The utility assessment of water samples indicates that most samples are not appropriate for consumption and are significantly below the established standards for potable water. In contrast, a significant portion of the groundwater samples were found to meet the criteria for irrigation suitability by adopting Wilcox and the US Salinity Laboratory criteria. The groundwater could be considered for irrigation with proper salinity control management. Overall, this study has significantly improved the understanding of the hydrogeochemical regimes and acts as a first step toward the sustainable utilization of water resources.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ministry of Science and Technology/ Environment, Water and renewable energy Directorate, Baghdad, Iraq

    Ali Al Maliki, Ali Hasan Falih, M.A Sultan & Amer Al-Naemi

  2. Isotope Hydrology Section, Division of Physical and Chemical Sciences, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna, Austria

    U. Saravana Kumar

  3. Geosciences Department, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, 15551, United Arab Emirates

    Dalal Alshamsi, Hasan Arman & Alaa Ahmed

  4. National Water and Energy Center, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, 15551, United Arab Emirates

    Dalal Alshamsi & Alaa Ahmed

  5. Geology Department, Division of Water Resource, Desert Research Center, Mathaf El Matariya Street, Cairo, 11753, Egypt

    Alaa Ahmed

  6. Water Research Center, Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research, Kuwait City, Kuwait

    Chidambaram Sabarathinam

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  1. Ali Al Maliki
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  3. Ali Hasan Falih
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  8. Alaa Ahmed
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  9. Chidambaram Sabarathinam
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Contributions

Ali Al Maliki: conceptualization, methodology, formal analysis and investigation, software, data curation, validation, writing—original draft, writing—review and editing. U. Saravana Kumar: conceptualization, methodology, supervision, validation, writing—review and editing. Ali Hasan Falih: formal analysis and investigation, data acquisition, validation, writing—original draft, writing—review and editing. Maitham Sultan: conceptualization, methodology, data curation, writing—review and editing. Amer Al-Naemi: formal analysis and investigation, data curation, supervision, writing—review and editing. Dalal Alshamsi: formal analysis and investigation, data curation, validation, writing—review and editing. Hasan Arman: data curation, validation, writing —review and editing. Alaa Ahmed: conceptualization, methodology, data curation, writing—review and editing. Chidambaram Sabarathinam: methodology, writing—original draft, writing—review and editing. All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version.

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Correspondence to U. Saravana Kumar.

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Al Maliki, A., Kumar, U.S., Falih, A.H. et al. Geochemical processes, salinity sources and utility characterization of groundwater in a semi-arid region of Iraq through geostatistical and isotopic techniques. Environ Monit Assess 196, 365 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-024-12533-1

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