Groundwater quality assessment using the weighted arithmetic index method in the selected villages of Butchayyapeta Mandal, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India

Groundwater quality assessment is an important measure to determine the usability of available water based on its physical, chemical, and bacteriological properties. In the present study, 10 physicochemical parameters have been considered for the groundwater quality assessment which include potential of hydrogen (pH), electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), sodium (Na + ), potassium (K + ), total hardness (TH), calcium (Ca 2+ ), magnesium (Mg 2+ ), bicarbonate (HCO 3 − ), and chloride (Cl − ). For the analysis, 21 samples for pre- and post-monsoon periods were collected from the wells/bore wells of five designated villages, Chinna Madina, Chittiyyapalem, Typuram, Rajam, and Neelakantapuram of the Butchayyapeta Mandal (sub-district) located in Visakhapatnam District, Andhra Pradesh, for the year 2017. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS 2012 ) has been used in this study to assess the suitability of the water for drinking. The water quality index (WQI) values derived by using WAI were categorized for various levels of water quality ranging from “excellent” to “unsuitable for drinking.” To get the spatial distribution pattern, the WQI values of sample points were interpolated in the Arc GIS environment. The results indicated that water quality is good in the north-western parts of the current study area during pre- and post-monsoon seasons.