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Patterns and Trends of the Pesticide Pollution of the Shallow Nile Delta Aquifer (Egypt)

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Abstract

Two hundred forty-nine groundwater samples collected from 55 irrigation water supply wells in Al-Mahala Al-Kubra, Samannoud, and Al-Santa districts of the Gharbiya Governorate (Egypt) during a monitoring survey carried out in January, June, and in November in 3 years (2013–2015). The prime objective was to document, for the first time, the status and sustained trends in the concentrations of pesticides in the shallow Nile Delta aquifer. The non-parametric Mann–Kendall and Thiel–Sen trend statistical tests were applied for detection and estimation of trends and their magnitude. Violation of standards clarified emergence of methyl parathion (98.1%), endrin (97.9%), endosulfan sulfate (96.5%), dieldrin (55.3%), atrazine (42.3%), and simazine (40.4%), in decreasing order of abundances. Malathion obeyed the permissible limits (900 μg L−1) in all samples. Methyl parathion showed an average rate of deterioration (μg L−1 year−1) of 0.82 that was largest in Al-Santa (1.0) followed by Al-Mahala Al-Kubra (0.63). Malathion proved the second largest rate emerging in Al-Mahala Al-Kubra (0.67) followed by Al-Santa (0.65). Endosulfan sulfate came third in deterioration rate (av. 0.37) followed by endrin (av. 0.32), atrazine (av. 0.32), dieldrin (av. 0.25), and simazine (av. 0.23). Groundwater improvements of pesticide contents propagated faster eastward and northward associated with larger surface water recharge rates from dense complex irrigation canals through thicker topmost silty clay layer and thicker peat layers inter-bedded in the sediments. For sustainable agriculture to alleviate negative impacts on groundwater resources and the environment, the use of ecofriendly bio-degradable or quickly deactivated pesticides along with awareness of farmers with the health hazards and the protective measures while handling pesticides are strongly recommended.

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Acknowledgements

The authors express their gratitude to Prof Dr. Jack T. Trevors, Editor-in-Chief of Water, Air, and Soil Pollution (WATE) journal, and to the anonymous reviewers for the given time and expertise to comment on the article and for their constructive comments, which contributed to the improvement of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geology Department, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta, 31527, Egypt

    Alaa A. Masoud & Nesma A. Abdel-Wahab Arafa

  2. National Water Research Center, El-Qanater El-Khairiya, 13621, Egypt

    Mohamed El-Bouraie

Authors
  1. Alaa A. Masoud
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  2. Nesma A. Abdel-Wahab Arafa
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  3. Mohamed El-Bouraie
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Correspondence to Alaa A. Masoud.

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Masoud, A.A., Abdel-Wahab Arafa, N.A. & El-Bouraie, M. Patterns and Trends of the Pesticide Pollution of the Shallow Nile Delta Aquifer (Egypt). Water Air Soil Pollut 229, 148 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-018-3802-5

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