Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Impact of anthropogenic activities on water quality of Lidder River in Kashmir Himalayas

  • Published:
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The pristine waters of Kashmir Himalaya are showing signs of deterioration due to multiple reasons. This study researches the causes of deteriorating water quality in the Lidder River, one of the main tributaries of Jhelum River in Kashmir Himalaya. The land use and land cover of the Lidder catchment were generated using multi-spectral, bi-seasonal IRS LISS III (October 2005 and May 2006) satellite data to identify the extent of agriculture and horticulture lands that are the main non-point sources of pollution at the catchment scale. A total of 12 water quality parameters were analyzed over a period of 1 year. Water sampling was done at eight different sampling sites, each with a varied topography and distinct land use/land cover, along the length of Lidder River. It was observed that water quality deteriorated during the months of June–August that coincides with the peak tourist flow and maximal agricultural/horticultural activity. Total phosphorus, orthophosphate phosphorus, nitrate nitrogen, and ammoniacal nitrogen showed higher concentration in the months of July and August, while the concentration of dissolved oxygen decreased in the same period, resulting in deterioration in water quality. Moreover, tourism influx in the Lidder Valley shows a drastic increase through the years, and particularly, the number of tourists visiting the valley has increased in the summer months from June to September, which is also responsible for deteriorating the water quality of Lidder River. In addition to this, the extensive use of fertilizers and pesticides in the agriculture and horticulture lands during the growing season (June–August) is also responsible for the deteriorating water quality of Lidder River.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Anonymous (2005). NNRMS Standards: a national standard for EO images, thematic and cartographic maps, GIS databases and spatial outputs. ISRO/NNRMS:TR:112:2005. A Committee Report: National Natural Resources Management System, Bangalore.

  • Anonymous. (2008). Digest of statistics. Directorate of Economics and Statistics. India: Government of Jammu and Kashmir.

    Google Scholar 

  • APHA. (1999). Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater (20th ed.). Washington, DC: APHA, AWWA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Beaulac, M. N., & Reckhow, K. H. (1982). An examination of land use nutrient export relationships. Water Resources Bulletin, 18, 1013–1024.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bhat, F. A., & Yousuf, A. R. (2003). Ecology of Shizothorax Heckel in Lidder River, Kashmir. M.Phil Dissertation, Centre of Research for Development, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, India.

  • Bion, H. H., & Middlemiss, C. S. (1928). Fauna of agglomeratic slate series of Kashmir. Journal of the Palaeontological Society of India, 22, 1–42.

    Google Scholar 

  • Botkin, D. B., & Keller, E. A. (2009). Environmental science: Earth as a living planet (6th ed.). Lucknow: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Buckley, R. C. (2001). Environmental impacts. In D. Weaver (Ed.), The encyclopaedia of ecotourism (pp. 379–394). Oxford: CAB International.

    Google Scholar 

  • Buckley, R. C. (2002). Pay to play in parks: global issues and Australian Alps case study. In L. Taylor (Ed.), Human use management in mountain areas (pp. 99–105). Banff: The Banff Centre.

    Google Scholar 

  • Caraco, N. F., & Cole, J. J. (1999). Human impact on nutrient export: an analysis using major world rivers. Ambio, 28, 167–170.

    Google Scholar 

  • CORD. (2011). Environmental Impact Assessment of Greater Pahalgam Master Plan 2025 (p. 251). Srinagar: University of Kashmir.

    Google Scholar 

  • Correll, L., Jordan, T. E., & Weller, D. E. (1992). Nutrient flux in a landscape: effects of coastal land use and terrestrial community mosaic on nutrient transport to coastal waters. Estuaries, 15, 431–442.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • CSIR. (1974). Analytical guide (laboratory techniques). Pretoria: CSIR.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dillon, P. J., & Kirchner, W. B. (1975). The effects of geology and land use on the export of phosphorus from watersheds. Water Research, 9, 135–148.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hill, A. R. (1978). Factors affecting the export of nitrate-nitrogen from drainage basins in southern Ontario. Water Research, 12, 1045–1057.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Horner, R., Booth, D. B., Azous, A., & May, C. W. (1996). Watershed determinants of ecosystem functioning. Proceedings of an Engineering Foundation Conference, Snowbird, Utah, August 4–9, 1996. New York, NY:ASCE, 978-0-7844-0232, 1997, VIII, (p. 596).

  • International Union for Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). (1997). Henry’s Law: IUPAC compendium of chemical terminology (2nd edition). Cambridge: Royal Society of Chemistry.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jarvie, H. P., Whitton, B. A., & Neal, C. (1998). Nitrogen and phosphorous in east coast British Rivers: speciation, sources and biological significance. The Science of the Total Environment, 210–11, 79–109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karbassi, A. R., Monavari, S. M., Nabi Bidhendi, G. R., Nouri, J., & Nematpour, K. (2008). Metals pollution assessment of sediment and water in the Shur River. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 147, 107–116.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Karbassi, A. R., Nouri, J., Mehrdadi, N., & Ayaz, G. O. (2008). Flocculation of heavy metals during mixing of freshwater with Caspian Sea water. Environmental Geology, 53(8), 1811–1816.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kaul, B. L. (1976). Geology and structure of part of Lidder Valley, Kashmir Himalaya. Records of the Geological Survey of India, 41, 278–284.

    Google Scholar 

  • Khadka, R. B., & Khanal, A. B. (2008). Environmental management plan (EMP) for Melamchi Water Supply Project, Nepal. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 146, 225–234.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lambin, E. F. (1996). Change detection at multiple scales: seasonal and annual variations in landscape variables. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, 62(8), 931–938.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leung, Y. F., & Marion, J. L. (2000). Recreation impacts and management in wilderness: a state-of-knowledge review. In D. N. Cole, S. F. McCool, W. T. Borrie, & J. O’Loughlin (Eds.), Wilderness science in a time of change (pp. 23–48). Fort Collins: Rocky Mountain Research Station: USDAFS.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lichtenegger, J. (1992). ERS-1: Landuse mapping and crop monitoring: a first close look to SAR data. Earth Observation Quaterly, May–June, 37–38.

  • Lillesand, T. M., Kiefer, R. W., & Chipman, J. W. (2004). Remote sensing and image interpretation (5th ed.). Lucknow: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lowrance, R., Todd, R., Fail, J., Jr., Hendrickson, O., Jr., Leonard, R., & Asmussen, L. (1984). Riparian forests as nutrient filters in agricultural watersheds. Bioscience, 34(6), 374–377.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mackereth, F. J., Haron, H., & Talling, J. F. (1978). Water analysis. Scientific Publications–Freshwater Biological Association, 36, 120.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mahvi, A. H., Nouri, J., Babaei, A. A., & Nabizadeh, R. (2005). Agricultural activities impact on groundwater nitrate pollution. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, 2(1), 41–47.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Middlemiss, C. S. (1910). Revision of Silurian-Trias sequence in Kashmir. Records of the Geological Survey of India, 40(3), 206–260.

    Google Scholar 

  • Monavari, S., & Guieysse, B. (2007). Development of water quality test kit based on substrate utilization and toxicity resistance in river microbial communities. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, 1(2), 136–142.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mtethiwa, A. H., Munyenyembe, A., Jere, W., & Nyali, E. (2008). Efficiency of oxidation ponds in wastewater treatment. International Journal of Environmental Research, 2(2), 149–152.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Muchoney, D. M., & Haack, B. N. (1994). Change detection for monitoring forest defoliation. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, 60, 1243–1251.

    Google Scholar 

  • Newsome, D., Moore, S. A., & Dowling, R. K. (2002). Natural area tourism. Clevedon: Channel View Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nouri, J., Karbassi, A. R., & Mirkia, S. (2008). Environmental management of coastal regions in the Caspian Sea. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, 5(1), 43–52.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oslon, C. E. (1960). Elements of photographic interpretation common to several sensors. Photogrammetric Engineering, 26(4), 651–656.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pandey, R. N., Chettri, P., Kunwar, R. R., & Ghimire, G. (1995). Case study on the effects of tourism on culture and the environment: Nepal. Bangkok: UNESCO Principal Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pearson, K., & Lee, A. (1896). Mathematical contributions to the theory of evolution. On telegony in man, &c. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, 60, 273–283.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Romshoo, S. A. (2003). Radar remote sensing for monitoring of dynamic processes related to biogeochemical exchanges in the tropical peatlands. Visual Geosciences, 9(1), 9–28.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Romshoo, S. A., & Muslim, M. (2011). Geospatial modeling for assessing the nutrient load of a Himalayan Lake. Environmental Earth Sciences, 64(5), 1269–1282.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Romshoo, S. A., Ali, N., & Rashid, I. (2011). Geoinformatics for characterizing and understanding the spatio-temporal dynamics (1969–2008) of Hokarser wetland in Kashmir Himalayas. International Journal of Physical Sciences, 6(5), 1026–1038.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sailer, C. T., Eason, E. L. E., & Brickey, J. L. (1997). Operational multispectral information extraction: the DLPO image interpretation program. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, 63, 129–136.

    Google Scholar 

  • Samarghandi, M., Nouri, J., Mesdaghinia, A. R., Mahvi, A. H., Nasseri, S., & Vaezi, F. (2007). Efficiency removal of phenol, lead and cadmium by means of UV/TiO2/H2O2 processes. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, 4(1), 19–25.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Simeonov, V., Stratis, J. A., Samara, C., Zahariadis, G., Voutsa, D., Anthemidi, A., et al. (2003). Assessment of surface water quality in Northern Greece. Water Research, 37, 4119–4124.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Singh, A. (1986). Change detection in the tropical forest environment of northeastern India using Landsat. In Remote sensing and tropical land management (pp. 237–254). New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Singh, A. (1989). Digital change detection techniques using remotely sensed data. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 10(6), 989–1003.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sirakaya, E., Jamal, T. B., & Choi, H. S. (2001). Developing indicators for destination sustainability. In D. B. Weaver (Ed.), The encyclopedia of ecotourism (pp. 411–432). New York: CAB International.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, V. H. (2003). Eutrophication of freshwater and coastal marine ecosystems a global problem. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 10(2), 126–139.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tateishi, R., & Kajiwara, K. (1991). Global land cover monitoring by NOAA NDVI data. Proceedings of the International Workshop of Environmental Monitoring from Space, Taejon, Korea (pp. 37–48).

  • Twesigye, C. K., Onywere, S. M., Getenga, Z. M., Mwakalila, S. S., & Nakiranda, J. K. (2011). The impact of land use activities on vegetation cover and water quality in the Lake Victoria watershed. The Open Environmental Engineering Journal, 4, 66–77.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Vega, M., Pardo, R., Barsado, E., & Deban, L. (1998). Assessment of seasonal and polluting effects on the quality of river water by exploratory data analysis. Water Research, 32, 3581–3592.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • W. H. O. (1996). Guidelines for drinking water quality, vol. 2. Health criteria and other supporting information (Vol. 2). Geneva: World Health Organization.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wadia, D. N. (1976). Geology of India (p. 536). India: The English Language Book Society.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wismann, V. R. (1994). Land surface monitoring using the ERS-I scatterometer. Earth Observation Quarterly, 44, 11–15.

    Google Scholar 

  • Xiuwan, C. (2002). Using remote sensing and GIS to analyze land cover change and its impacts on regional sustainable development. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 23(1), 107–124.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yadav, S. S., & Kumar, R. (2011). Monitoring water quality of Kosi River in Rampur District, Uttar Pradesh, India. Advances in Applied Science Research, 2(2), 197–201.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zaz, S. N. & Romshoo, S. A. (2008). Knowledge-based approach for land cover classification from satellite data. Proceedings of National Conference of Indian Society of Geomatics on Advances of Remote Sensing Technology and Applications with Special Emphasis on Micro-wave Remote Sensing held from 18–20th December, 2008, Gandhinagar Gujrat, India.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth Sciences, University of Kashmir, Hazratbal, Srinagar, Kashmir, 190006, India

    Irfan Rashid & Shakil Ahmad Romshoo

Authors
  1. Irfan Rashid
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Shakil Ahmad Romshoo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Shakil Ahmad Romshoo.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Rashid, I., Romshoo, S.A. Impact of anthropogenic activities on water quality of Lidder River in Kashmir Himalayas. Environ Monit Assess 185, 4705–4719 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-012-2898-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-012-2898-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation