Quaternary groundwater aquifer suitability for drinking in Akhmim, Upper Egypt: an assessment using water quality index and GIS techniques

The Quaternary aquifer has a special significance in Akhmim district, Upper Egypt, especially during the dry seasons, when surface water resources are insufficient and limited. In Akhmim district, the population mainly depends on groundwater for drinking, especially in spontaneous residential areas and inside agricultural lands. Therefore, assessing the groundwater quality is necessary to reduce diseases resulting from using polluted water in drinking. The Weighted Arithmetic Water Quality Index (WAWQI) was used for evaluating the groundwater quality, and it was classified according to the Egyptian and WHO standards and based on fifteen measured physicochemical parameters (TDS, Na, Cl, Ca, pH, Mg, NO3, SO4, TH, Cr, Cu, Fe, Pb, Mn, and Zn). To investigate the spatial distribution of WAWQI in Akhmim district, the spatial analyst tools (IDW method) were used. The WAWQI results showed a great diversity in groundwater viability for drinking due to the exposure of groundwater to many sources of degradation, identified through field verification and previous work about the study area. The groundwater of the Quaternary aquifer was divided into excellent, good, poor, very poor, and unsuitable. In addition, about 50% of Akhmim district wells are inappropriate for drinking with classes ranging from unsuitable to poor. To use groundwater for drinking, the sources of degradation to which the groundwater is exposed must first be reduced, and the water should be treated before drinking.