EVALUATE THE WATER SUITABILITY FOR IRRIGATION OF DIFFERENT STREAMS USING NUMERICAL MODELS

Water quality of the main streams in ShariaGovernorate wereevaluated using the water quality index (WQI) technique and Piper diagram. A water quality index provides a single number that expresses the overall water quality at a certain location and time based on several water quality parameters. Several essential parameters were investigated such as pH; electrical conductivity (EC), main cation, anions, Iron (Fe), Cobalt (Co), Nicle (Ni), and Cadmium (Cd) were taken for the calculation of WQI and the Piper diagram. The results of the water quality index in the spring season at El-Wadi Canal, Abu El-Akhdar Canal and Bahar El-Baqar drain were 164.5, 159.38 and 303.6 that classified the water suitability for irrigation as unfit for irrigation,unfit for irrigation and unfit for irrigation, respectively. While the WQI for the same locations in the autumn seasons were 72.3, 8.7, and 96 that classified the water suitability for irrigation as fair, excellent and poor for irrigation, for El-Wadi Canal, Abu Elakhdar canal and Bahar El-Baqar drain respectively. The impact of various anthropogenic activities was evident on some parameters such as the EC, alkalinity and hardness. The Piper diagram enables us to determine the ionic composition of the water samples and their classifications. It is suggested that monitoring of the drain is necessary for proper management. Application of the WQI is also suggested as a very helpful tool that enables the public and decision-makers to evaluate water quality of Egypt Lakes.