Nitrogen in Water from Wells

ECOLOGICAL CHEMIST RY AND ENGINEERING A Vol. 18, No. 4 2011 Alojzy WOJTAS1, Ma³gorzata D¥BEK 2, Gra¿yna PIOTROWSKA3 and Tadeusz MALINOWSKI4 NITROGEN IN WATER FROM WELLS ZWI¥ZKI AZOTOWE W WODACH STUDZIENNYCH Abstract: The research, which encompassed the period from 1981 to 2009, was conducted on water samples collected from 15 wells, 24–103 m in depth, located within the administrative districts of Olecko and Ostroda. The results of water analyses were varied depending on the location of a well and year of the study. The waters were characterized by a high content of manganese and iron. Ammonia was found in all the samples except from the wells in Cimochy, Niemsty, Szczecinki in 2005 and in Gucin in 2009. Nitrate(III) and nitrate(V) were determined much less frequently than ammonia. None of the three above-mentioned compounds was detected in three wells in the district of Olecko. Keywords: groundwater, nitrogen, ammonia, nitrates, water quality In the region of Warmia and Mazury, potable and other water is drawn from the quaternary water-bearing floor [1]. Water quality control indicates that most of this water belongs to Class II. Groundwater from the Quaternary is characterized by an elevated content of iron and manganese [2]. Sometimes, large amounts of ammonia, in excess of 1.5 mg N × dm –3 , as well as nitrates are found in such water samples [2, 3]. Particularly vulnerable to nitrogen pollution are shallow water-bearing layers near pastures, animal breeding farms, settlements without sewerage or sewage treatment plants. The anthropogenic origin of ammonium nitrogen disqualifies most of such waters from being supplied to water pipeworks [4]. Deep groundwater contains ammonia of the geological origin [3]. Its increased content is found in waters which flow through layers of brown coal, peat and lignite [5]. Among the characteristics of such water are alkaline reaction and intensive color. 1 Department of Environmental Chemistry, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, pl. £ódzki 4, 10–718 Olsztyn, Poland, phone: +48 60 397 37 72, fax: +48 89 523 39 76, email: [email protected] 2 District Health and Epidemiology Centre, Olecko, ul. Wojska Polskiego 13, 19–400 Olecko, Poland. 3 Department of Chemistry, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, pl. £ódzki 4, 10–718 Olsztyn, Poland. 4 Department of Municipal Economy, ul. Zagrodowa 1, 14–105 £ukta, Poland. 638 Alojzy Wojtas et al Contamination of groundwater may also be the result of its excessive exploitation [4]. Poland belongs to countries with poor water resources. The average annual outflow is about 1600 m3 per capita, while in some other European countries it reaches 4600 m 3 per capita [6]. Therefore, clean water is the greatest wealth of Warmia and Mazury. The purpose of this study has been to examine tendencies in fluctuations of nitrogen compounds found in waters from wells in the districts of Ostroda and Olecko. Materials and methods Some of the physicochemical properties of groundwater sampled from wells in the districts of Olecko and Ostroda were analyzed (Fig. 1). DI STRICT OF OS TR ODA DI STRICT OF OLECK O Fig. 1. Location of water intakes In accordance with the binding requirements for water sampling, samples of raw water for laboratory analysis were taken from the following intakes: Period Commune Location, depth of a well [m] of research Kowale Oleckie Kowale Oleckie (50), Stozne (77), Szeszki (41) 1999–2006 Wieliczki Cimochy (103), Krupin (62), Niedzwiedzkie (56) 1999–2006 Swietajno Swietajno (82), Niemsty (83) 2000–2006 Olecko Gaski (45), Gordejki Male (67), Lenarty (52), Szczecinki (76), Olecko (63) 1981–2006 Lukta Lukta (24), Gucin (40) 2007–2009 Nitrogen in Water from Wells 639 Analyses of water samples were carried out in the Laboratory of Municipal Hygiene at the District Sanitary and Epidemiological Station in Olecko and at the Sanitary and Epidemiological Station in Olsztyn. Determination of the physicochemical properties of water relied on the following methods: pH – by potentiometry, electrolytic conductivity – by the conductivity method, ammonia – by Nessler’s method, nitrate (III) nitrates (V), manganese, iron – colorimetrically. The results were processed using the statistical software packages Statistica and Excel. Means, standard deviation, regression equations and correlation coefficients were computed. Results and discussion Based on the results of our study, which comprised many wells, it was demonstrated that the quality of drawn water varied, depending on the location of a well and year of the sampling. The analyzed water samples were characterized by a high content of manganese and iron (Tables 1, 2). The values of electrolytic conductivity in 13 wells were on average below 700 mS × cm –1 , except the wells in Niemsty (710 mS × cm –1 ) and Cimochy (708 mS × cm –1 ). Table 1 Indicators of water quality from wells located in the communes of Olecko and Swietajno –3 –3 –3 –3 –3 dm dm dm dm × × × dm × –1 3 2 4 × cm × S pH Manganese mg Mn Nitrates(V) mg NO Nitrates(III) mg NO Reaction Ammonia mg NH Location of wells Factors Conductivity m Iron mg Fe Min. 452 7.3 0.02 0.00 0.10 0.02 0.51 Max 812 7.6 0.39 0.04 11.10 0.11 4.26 Gaski X 652 7.5 0.15 0.02 5.52 0.06 1.64 SD 150 0.1 0.14 0.02 5.05 0.04 1.53 Min. 505 7.4 0.37 0.00 0.00 0.08 1.93 Gordejki Max 535 7.5 0.69 0.00 0.00 0.13 2.77 Male X 520 7.5 0.53 0.00 0.00 0.10 2.32 SD 15 0.1 0.16 0.02 0.17 Min. 535 7.2 0.41 0.00 0.00 0.06 2.72 Max 577 7.5 0.79 0.00 0.00 0.12 2.81 Lenarty X 556 7.4 0.60 0.00 0.00 0.09 2.77 SD 21 0.2 0.19 0.03 0.05 Min. 560 7.1 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.05 0.70 Max 642 7.8 0.71 0.02 0.89 0.45 5.18 Szczecinki X 593 7.4 0.38 0.01 0.44 0.17 3.72 SD 35 0.3 0.25 0.01 0.37 0.15 1.57 640 Min. – minimum, Max – maximum, Gaski Niemsty Swietajno Stozne Oleckie Kowale Olecko Location Location of wells of wells Indicators of water quality from wells located in the communes of Kowale Oleckie, Min. 398 7.4 0.5 0.00 0.00 0.01 2.23 Min. 469 7.0 0.04 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.03 Min. 452Min. 7.3 683 0.02Min. 7.2 0.00 502 0.00 0.10 7.3 0.00 0.02 0.15 0.00 0.51 0.00 0.16 0.00 3.24 0.06 0.97 Min. 432 7.3 0.15 0.00 0.00 0.06 1.05 Max 812Max 7.6 737 0.39Max 7.3 0.04 547 11.10 0.13 0.11 7.5 0.00 4.26 0.93 0.00 0.03 0.19 1.77 4.94 0.10 3.23 Max 489 7.7 0.28 0.04 0.89 0.16 1.69 Max 591 7.6 1.46 0.02 0.89 0.23 3.31 Max 519 8.1 0.39 0.01 1.55 0.14 1.00 SD 150SD 0.1 27 0.14SD 0.02 0.1 23 5.05 0.07SD 0.04 0.1 23 1.53 0.32 0.4 0.01 0.11 0.77 0.02 0.00 0.02 0.85 0.51 0.83 0.05 0.29 SD 24SD 0.2 79 0.05 0.1 0.02 0.36 0.39 0.01 0.04 0.39 0.26 0.09 0.41 X X X X X X Factors Factors 652 7.5710 0.15 7.3 0.02525 0.07 5.52 7.5 0.00 0.06486 0.39 0.00 1.64 7.7 0.01 0.18 0.23 0.44 4.09 0.00 0.08 0.41 2.12 0.08 0.54 464 7.5500 0.23 7.5 0.02Conductivity 0.87 0.22 0.01 0.11 0.22 1.33 0.15 2.84 Conductivity mS × cm –1 mS × cm –1 X Reaction – average, SD – standard deviation. Reaction Wieliczki and Lukta pH pH Alojzy Wojtas et al Ammonia Ammonia –3 –3 mg NH 4 × dm mg NH 4 × dm Nitrates(III) Nitrates(III) –3 –3 mg NO 2 × dm mg NO 2 × dm Nitrates(V) Nitrates(V) –3 –3 mg NO 3 × dm mg NO 3 × dm Manganese Manganese –3 –3 mg Mn × dm mg Mn × dm Table 1 contd. Iron Table 2 Iron mg Fe × dm –3 mg Fe × dm –3 Nitrogen in Water from Wells 641 Table 2 contd. –3 –3 –3 –3 –3 dm dm dm dm × × × dm × –1 3 2 4 × cm × S Iron mg Fe Manganese mg Mn Location of wells Factors Conductivity m Nitrates(V) mg NO Nitrates(III) mg NO Reaction pH Ammonia mg NH Min. 524 7.4 0.16 0.00 0.00 0.05 0.95 Max 547 7.8 0.46 0.01 0.89 0.11 2.31 Szeszki X 534 7.5 0.25 0.00 0.28 0.08 1.56 SD 12 0.2 0.11 0.00 0.36 0.02 0.47 Min.

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