Hydrogeochemical and hydrochemical evaluation of surface water: insights into water quality for drinking use – case of Babar Dam in northeastern Algeria

The quality of surface water from the Babar Dam in Khenchela province, northeastern Algeria, was assessed using monthly physicochemical data collected from July 2018 to June 2019. This study aimed to evaluate the water's suitability for both drinking and agricultural purposes. For the drinking water assessment, two water quality indices, the Water Quality Index (WQI) and the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment Water Quality Index (CCME-WQI), were employed. The WQI results indicated that 99% of the monitoring stations consistently had good quality water, while only 1% showed permissible quality throughout the year, meeting the standard criteria for drinking water. In contrast, the CCME-WQI classified the water as marginal at all stations, suggesting that while the water met the basic standards for human consumption, certain parameters such as conductivity and specific ion concentrations fell outside the ideal range, potentially requiring treatment for improved quality. These findings highlight the overall suitability of the water for consumption but also emphasize the need for continued monitoring and possible intervention to ensure water quality remains consistently safe for all uses.