An assessment of physico-chemical characteristics of the coastal water of Narmada estuary, Gujarat and statistical evaluation of its seasonal changes
2012
Kumar, N.J.I. | Basil, G. | Rita, N.K. | Sajish, P.R. | Shailendra, V.
Narmada estuary is one of the major riverine systems in Western India. Modernization and industrialization in its neighbourhood in the north have greatly influenced many tributaries of the Narmada and adjacent coastal environments in the recent past. To trace the influence of this modernization activity further south of the Narmada estuary and to understand the quality of Narmada estuarine water reaching the coastal region, investigations on physicochemical parameters were carried out from July 2008 to June 2009. These consisted of the temperature, pH, salinity, dissolved oxygen,, the dissolved PO4-P, NO3-N and SiO4-Si nutrients and also chlorophyll-a present in the water off the mouth of the Narmada estuary. Multivariate statistics and principal component analysis applied to the datasets during the whole study period indicated two factors which influenced water variability to an extent of 72%. Principal axis factoring and alpha factoring were used to observe the mode of association of parameters and their interrelationships in evaluating the water quality. The results indicated the addition of phosphates and silicates to the coastal water by the Narmada estuary from natural sources during this study period. The study indicated that the Narmada estuary adds sufficiently well-oxygenated, nutrient-rich water to the coastal region.
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