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Geochemical processes regulating groundwater chemistry with special reference to nitrate and fluoride enrichment in Chhatarpur area, Madhya Pradesh, India

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Abstract

The present study focuses on the hydrogeochemical composition of groundwater in Chhatarpur area with special focus on nitrate and fluoride contamination, considering the fact that groundwater is the only major source of drinking water here. Carbonate and silicate mineral weathering followed by ground water–surface water interactions, ion exchange and anthropogenic activities are mainly responsible for high concentrations of cations and anions in the groundwater in the region. The average concentration of nitrate and fluoride found in 27 samples is 1.08 and 61.4 mg/L, respectively. Nitrate enrichment mainly occurs in areas occupied with intense fertilizer practice in agricultural fields. Since the area is not dominated by industrialization, the possibility of anthropogenic input of fluoride is almost negligible, thus the enrichment of fluoride in groundwater is only possible due to rock–water interaction. The highly alkaline conditions, which favor the fluorite dissolution, are the main process responsible for high concentration of fluoride.

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Acknowledgments

R. Avtar is highly thankful to the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi, for the financial support, School of Environmental Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, for laboratory support. R. Avtar and P. Kumar are also thankful to the Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho-MEXT) Scholarship to pursue doctoral research in Japan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. United Nations University Institute for Sustainability and Peace (UNU-ISP), Tokyo, Japan

    Ram Avtar, Akhilesh Surjan & Koel Roychowdhury

  2. Institute of Science and Technology for Advance Studies and Research (ISTAR), Vallabh Vidyanagar, 388120, Gujarat, India

    Pankaj Kumar

  3. Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

    Akhilesh Surjan

  4. Faculty of Science and Environment, Mahatma Gandhi Chitrakoot Gramodaya Vishwavidyalaya, Chitrakoot, 485780, Madhya Pradesh, India

    L. N. Gupta

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  1. Ram Avtar
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  2. Pankaj Kumar
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  3. Akhilesh Surjan
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  4. L. N. Gupta
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  5. Koel Roychowdhury
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Correspondence to Pankaj Kumar.

Appendix

Appendix

Table 4 Additional information of ground water sampling points
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Avtar, R., Kumar, P., Surjan, A. et al. Geochemical processes regulating groundwater chemistry with special reference to nitrate and fluoride enrichment in Chhatarpur area, Madhya Pradesh, India. Environ Earth Sci 70, 1699–1708 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-013-2257-7

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