Hydrochemical characteristics and quality assessment of groundwater from fractured Albian carbonaceous shale aquifers around Enyigba-Ameri, southeastern Nigeria

Abstract

Enyigba-Ameri area is known for its Pb–Zn mining activities and the mine water is usually discharged directly into nearby streams and surface runoff. In order to determine the impacts of mining activities on the quality of water in the area and the general hydrochemical characteristics, field measurements and laboratory tests were carried out on water samples collected from the area. Field measurements and laboratory analyses of physicochemical parameters were determined using standard methods. In addition to the multivariate analyses (principal component analysis and cluster analysis) and ANOVA analysis, ionic crossplots were used to determine the groundwater physicochemical characteristics and geochemical evolution. From the results, it was observed that Pb4+, Zn2+, Fe2 + & 3+, Ca2+, Mg2+, and K+ had a concentration higher than the stipulated guideline values. Three principal components which explained 87.42% of the total dataset were extracted through the data reduction process. Cluster analysis of the hydrochemical data grouped the water samples into three distinct classes. It was observed that the water chemistry is mainly affected by silicate minerals weathering, carbonate weathering, and base ion exchange processes in descending order. ANOVA analysis showed that Zn2+, Fe2 + & 3+, and Mg2+ had mean values that significantly differed from each other based on the sources of the samples. The Wilcox diagram revealed 4 classes of irrigation water types and the irrigation water quality indices showed that the groundwater in the area is not generally suitable for irrigation purposes