Analysis and Control of the Physicochemical Quality of Groundwater in the Chari Baguirmi Region in Chad

Water resources are threatened nowadays by pollution that comes from domestic, industrial and agricultural discharges without prior treatment. This pollution causes the degradation of water quality. Surface pollutants can seep through the soil into water tables. The objective of our work is to assess and control the physicochemical quality of the Chari Baguirmi groundwater, to protect human health. The quality of 83 boreholes was assessed, while performing analysis for 12 physicochemical parameters at the National Water Laboratory and at the Center for Quality Control of Foodstuffs in Chad. These parameters are pH, EC, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Na⁺, K⁺, Cl⁻, SO₄²⁻, NH₄⁺ and NO₃⁻, Fe²⁺ and HCO₃⁻. The results obtained were also compared with WHO standards. The geochemical statistical approach has made it possible to characterize hydro geochemical properties and to understand the major processes of mineralization of groundwater resources in the Chari Baguirmi region in Chad. Some of its waters are acidic and weakly mineralized, rich in Fe²⁺ and NH₄⁺. The origin of the mineralization is due to the alteration of the host rocks and to the hydrolysis of silicate and ferromagnesian minerals, as well as anthropogenic pollution. The ammonium concentrations in N’Djamena boreholes are higher than WHO standards, indicating the presence of pollution which may come from organic waste. These results constitute a preliminary step in understanding hydro geochemical functioning and a basis for monitoring the physicochemical quality of water in the study area. View Full-Text