Comparative water quality assessment between a young and a stabilized hydroelectric reservoir in Aliakmon River, Greece

In this work, a comparative study on the water quality characteristics of two in-line water reservoirs (artificial lakes) in Aliakmon River (Western Macedonia, Greece) is performed. Polyfytos Reservoir and Ilarion Reservoir were created in 1975 and 2012 respectively, in order to serve the homonymous hydroelectric stations. In young artificial lakes, severe deterioration of water quality may occur; thus, the monitoring and assessment of their water quality characteristics and their statistical interpretation are of great importance. In order to evaluate any temporal or spatial variations and to characterize water quality of these two in-line water reservoirs, water quality data from measurements conducted from 2012 to 2015 were statistically processed and interpreted by using a modified National Sanitation Foundation water quality index (WQI). The water physicochemical characteristics of the two reservoirs were found to be generally within the legislation limits, with relatively small temporal and spatial variations. Although Polyfytos Reservoir showed no significant deviations of its water quality, Ilarion Reservoir exhibited deviations in total Kjeldahl nitrogen, nitrite nitrogen, total suspended solids, and turbidity due to the inundated vegetation decomposition. The conducted measurements and the use of the modified NSFWQI revealed that during the inundation period of Ilarion Reservoir, its water quality was “moderate” and that the deviations were softened through time, leading to “good” water quality during its maturation period. Three years since the creation of Ilarion Reservoir, water quality does not match that of Aliakmon River (feeding water) or that of the stabilized reservoir (Polyfytos Reservoir), whose quality is characterized as “high.” The use of a WQI, such as the proposed modified NSFWQI, for evaluating water quality of each sampling site and of an entire water system proved to be a rapid and relatively accurate assessment tool.