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Integrated techniques to identify groundwater vulnerability to pollution in a highly industrialized terrain, Tamilnadu, India

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Abstract

Investigation has been made to identify groundwater vulnerability to pollution by using geoelectric and hydrochemical investigations in an important industrial town Mettur located in Tamilnadu state of India. Schlumberger vertical electric soundings were carried out in 23 locations and groundwater samples collected from bore wells in the same locations. The resistivity value with <20 Ωm up to a depth of 36 m indicate contamination of groundwater in areas influenced by sewages from industries, domestic and agricultural practices in the central and southern part of the study area. The calculated specific conductance was noted higher than EC in central and southern part of the study area with low resistivity indicating the contaminated nature of groundwater. Concentrations of Ca, Na, Mg and K along with Cl, HCO3, SO4 and NO3 were higher in certain locations when compared with WHO and ISI standards. The facies concept demarcated four groups based on the nature of groundwater contamination. The trace elements Fe and Pb were higher in locations confined to industrial zones and Zn and Cu were within the prescribed limit in all the samples.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth Sciences, Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar, 608 002, India

    Krishnaraj Srinivasamoorthy, K. Vijayaraghavan, Murugesan Vasanthavigar & R. Rajivgandhi

  2. National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, 500 006, India

    V. S. Sarma

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  1. Krishnaraj Srinivasamoorthy
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  2. K. Vijayaraghavan
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  3. Murugesan Vasanthavigar
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  4. R. Rajivgandhi
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  5. V. S. Sarma
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Correspondence to Krishnaraj Srinivasamoorthy.

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Srinivasamoorthy, K., Vijayaraghavan, K., Vasanthavigar, M. et al. Integrated techniques to identify groundwater vulnerability to pollution in a highly industrialized terrain, Tamilnadu, India. Environ Monit Assess 182, 47–60 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-010-1857-x

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