Status of Trace and Toxic Metals in Indian Rivers, 2014
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Government of India Ministry of Water Resources Central Water Commission StatusStatus ofof TraceTrace andand ToxicToxic MetalsMetals inin IndianIndian RiversRivers River Data Directorate Planning & Development Organisation New Delhi 110066 May 2014 River Data Directorate Planning & Development Organisation Central Water Commission New Delhi 110066 May 2014 Chairman Central Water Commission & Ex-Officio Secretary to the Government of India Room No. 315(S), Sewa Bhawan R. K. Puram, New Delhi-110066 FOREWORD Central Water Commission, an apex engineering organization of the Ministry of Water Resources, Government of India, is playing an active role in this endeavour. The Central Water Commission is monitoring water quality at 396 key locations, at present, covering all the major river basins of India. The Water Quality Monitoring Network of Central Water Commission comprises of a three tier Laboratory system for analysis of the parameters viz, Level-I, Level-II and Level-III/II+ laboratories. The Level-I laboratories are located at 370 field water quality monitoring stations on various rivers in India for measurement of in-situ physical and biological parameters. There are 18 Level-II Laboratories located at selected division offices to analyse 25 physico-chemical and bacteriological parameters. Five Level-III/II+ laboratories are functioning at Varanasi, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, and Guwahati where 41 parameters including heavy metals/ toxic parameters and pesticides are being analysed. Water Quality monitoring issues in Indian Rivers are assuming great importance in the present day context with increase in urbanization and rapid industrialization. The Government of India has constituted Water Quality Assessment Authority (WQAA) to address these issues. A uniform protocol along with standardization of parameters has been made by WQAA to bring uniformity in analysis. Trace and toxic metals in the river water has large bearing on the health of human being, aquatic life and ecology. This publication is brought about to establish the spots that have been identified as having serious issues related to the presence of Trace and Toxic metals. I appreciate the hard work done and efforts put in by Shri M. P. Singh, Chief Engineer, P&D and Shri N. K. Manglik, Director, RDD under the overall guidance of Shri K. N. Keshri, Member (RM) in bringing out the first edition of this publication titled “Status of Trace & Toxic Metals in Indian Rivers”. I also appreciate the data compilation and report preparation work done by Dr. Rajni Kant Sharma, Research Officer (RDD) and Dr. Jakir Hussain, Research Officer (NRWQL). I hope this publication would prove to be useful to all the stakeholders and agencies that are responsible for taking necessary remedial measures for conservation of river water quality. (A. B. Pandya) Chairman 30th May 2014 New Delhi Member (River Management) Central Water Commission & Ex-Officio Additional Secretary to the Government of India Room No. 212(S), Sewa Bhawan R. K. Puram, New Delhi-110066 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Water is not only one of the most important and basic natural resources on earth but also one of the most essential commodities of our day-to-day life. This natural resource forms the lifeline of all the living organisms. Rain and snow are the two natural sources of pure water on earth. The initial phase of the journey of water on earth comprises surface run-off in the form of streams, rivers and lakes. The total amount of water available in the world is constant. The quantity of water available on earth is generally said to be adequate to meet all the demands of mankind. But its quality and distribution over different geographical regions on the earth is uneven and causes problems of scarcity and suitability. Hence, the monitoring of the quality of water so as to conserve its healthy nature is very important as this natural resource plays a crucial role in the economic and social development processes of the nation. Central Water Commission has been monitoring river water quality in all major river basins since a very long time and has generated a lot of data over the period. Besides many Physico-chemical and Biological Parameters which are being monitored since long, monitoring of ‘Trace & Toxic’ elements has also been started since November-2011 so as to track their presence and variance over a period of time in the rivers of India. In order to share the data with various stakeholders, it has been decided to bring out various status reports utilizing the vast data collected by CWC over the years. I appreciate the commendable efforts put in by the committee that was constituted on 31st October, 2013 for publication of various water quality reports in bringing out this publication in such a short span of time. Efforts put in by the officers of River Data Directorate, Shri Ramjeet Verma, Dy. Director, Shri Rajesh Kumar, Dy. Director, Dr. Rajni Kant Sharma, Research Officer, Dr. Jakir Hussain, Research Officer (NRWQL) Shri Raj Singh, Assistant Research Officer (NRWQL) and Shri S. K. Kulshrestha, Assistant Research Officer in the preparation of the report are also appreciated. Efforts put in by Dr. Jakir Hussain, Research Officer and Shri Rajesh Kumar, Senior Research Assistant, NRQWL, YBO in analyzing the river water samples and providing the results are also appreciated. I also express sincere thanks to all field Chief Engineers of CWC for making arrangements for collection and submission of river water samples to the National River Water Quality Laboratory, CWC, New Delhi. (K. N. Keshri) Member (RM) Chief Engineer Planning & Development Central Water Commission Room No. 901(S), Sewa Bhawan R. K. Puram, New Delhi-110066 PREFACE Water pollution, which is one of the major environmental concerns in India, is the introduction of contaminants into the natural waters that cause adverse change. Water Pollution is caused by the discharge of commercial and industrial wastewater, intentionally or through spills, into surface waters; discharges of untreated domestic sewage and chemical contaminants such as chlorine from treated sewage; release of waste and contaminants into surface runoff flowing to surface water sources including urban runoff and agricultural runoff which may contain chemical fertilizers and pesticides; eutrophication and littering; discharges of untreated or semi- treated industrial effluents; mining activities, etc. Many water resources have been rendered polluted and hazardous to man and other living systems. The toxic substances discharged into water bodies are not only accumulated through the food chain but may also either limit the number of species or produce dense populations of microorganisms. Aquatic ecosystems are affected by several stresses that significantly weaken biodiversity. River pollution is an environmental problem in the world. Because of unprecedented development, human beings are responsible for choking several aquatic ecosystems to death. Storm water runoff and carry out of sewage into rivers are two common ways that various nutrients and other pollutants enter the aquatic ecosystems resulting in pollution. Heavy metal contamination particularly the non-essential elements may have distressing effects on the ecological balance of the recipient aquatic environment with a diverse of organisms including fish. It has particular significance in eco-toxicology, since the heavy metals are highly persistent and have the potential to bio-accumulate and bio-magnify in food chain and become toxic to living organisms at higher tropic levels in nature. This publication “Status of Trace & Toxic Metals in Indian Rivers” has been initiated by Central Water Commission with a vision to come out with a Revised Edition after regular intervals. It is hoped that this document would be beneficial to various stakeholders and agencies that are responsible for taking necessary remedial measures. Results of analysis of samples collected from 396 stations covering 16 River Basins in India during Sept.-2011, Feb.-2012, June-2012, Oct.-2012, March-2013 and Aug.-2013 have been utilized in the preparation of the present report. Keeping this in view, a committee was constituted on 31st October, 2013 for publication of various water quality reports under the Chairmanship of Shri N. K. Manglik, Director, RDD and comprising Dr. Rajni Kant Sharma, Research Officer, RDD and Shri Raj Singh, Assistant Research Officer, NRWQL as members. The present publication is the first one that has been brought out by the committee. (M. P. Singh) Chief Engineer (P&D) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In the developing countries like India, facilities of drinking water treatment before supply are not always available or possible. In many parts of the country people take water directly from the source for their domestic use. Because of the unplanned urbanization and industrialization, availability of good quality and quantity of water is a threat. To observe the current status of toxic metal content of Indian Rivers, river water samples from the water quality (WQ) monitoring stations spread over 16 river basins of Central Water Commission were collected in the months of September 2011, February 2012, June 2012, October, 2012, March 2013 and August 2013. These samples were analyzed for selected nine trace and toxic metals at National River Water Quality Laboratory, Central Water Commission, New Delhi. Toxic metal wise summary of the results are as under: Arsenic (As) Total 1921 numbers of water samples from 387 water quality monitoring stations were collected and analyzed for Arsenic content in Indian Rivers. Arsenic concentration was well within the acceptable limit of Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS) and no toxicity of As in the Indian rivers is observed during the study period. The arsenic concentration varies from 0.00 to 9.47µg/L. Maximum arsenic concentration (9.47µg/L) was observed at Sundergarh Water Quality monitoring station on Ib River during October 2012. Cadmium (Cd) Out of 1934 water samples, 7 samples were found to have cadmium content more than the acceptable limits. BIS (Bureau of Indian Standard), 10500:2012 have recommended an acceptable limit of 3 µg/L of cadmium in drinking water.