Integrated Assessment of Groundwater Quality: A Case Study of the Roman City and its Northern Surroundings

Groundwater stands as a crucial natural resource, playing an important role in maintaining the environment and in all human activities worldwide. Regardless of natural or anthropogenic factors, water quality can suffer significant changes due to pressures exerted in the soil. This paper presents qualitative analyses of groundwater, where different physico-chemical parameters of the groundwater in the area are analyzed and monitored. In this study, various analysis techniques were employed, such as spatial analysis, statistical analyses, data comparisons, which were used to evaluate groundwater quality across different spatial and temporal scales. For a better qualitative characterization, the data from the same 12 sampling points were compared both for the year 2021 and 2022. Chemical parameters such as pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids (TDS), calcium, magnesium, total hardness (TH), bicarbonate, chloride, nitrate, and sulfate are analyzed to understand the various geochemical processes affecting groundwater quality. A Water Quality Index was employed, comparing analytical data against standards set by the World Health Organization (WHO) and calculated according to Romanian laws regarding water potability. The results indicate that over 75% of sampling points fall into the "excellent" class in both years, indicating that the water can be consumed by the population. The variation of nitrate in local wells highlights the need to monitor groundwater for future sustainability.