Identifying spatial and seasonal patterns of river water quality in a semiarid irrigated agricultural Mediterranean basin

A detailed understanding of the study area is essential to achieve key information and optimize the monitoring, analysis, and evaluation of water quality of natural ecosystems that have been highly transformed into agricultural areas. Using classification techniques like the hierarchical cluster analysis (CA) and partial triadic analysis (PTA), we assessed the sources of water pollution and the seasonal influence of human activities in water composition in a river basin from northeastern Spain. The results suggested that a strong connection existed between water quality and the seasonality of the human activities. The CA showed the spatial relationship between water chemistry and the adjacent land uses. The PTA associated the analyzed variables to their pollutant source. Electrical conductivity (EC), Cl−, SO4 2−–S, Na+, and Mg2+ ions were related with agricultural sources, whereas NH4 +–N, PT, and PO4 3−–P were linked with urban polluted sites. Concentration of NO3ˉ–N was associated with urban land use. Differences in water composition according to the irrigation intensity were also found during the irrigation season. The statistical tools used in this work, especially the PTA, allowed us to jointly analyze the spatial and seasonal components of water pollutant trends. We obtained a more comprehensive knowledge of water quality patterns in the study area, which will be essential when taking measures to minimize the effects of water pollution.This work is part of the AGUAFLASH project funded by the Program of Territorial Cooperation “Interreg IVB-SUDOE” (SOE1/P2/F146) which is funded by EU FEDER. Thanks are given to Comarca de Los Monegros for its consistent cooperation in the development of this project. We thank C. Pedrocchi, J. Cervantes, S. G. Eisman, M. García, S. Pérez and A. Barcos for their comments and their crucial assistance in the field and laboratory work. A. Calvo at CHE contributed with key formal cooperation to this work. We also wish to thank the AEMET (Spanish Meteorological Agency) for access to meteorological data. This work was also developed as Research Group E61 Aragon Goverment.Peer reviewe

Identifying spatial and seasonal patterns of river water quality in a semiarid irrigated agricultural Mediterranean basin

A detailed understanding of the study area is essential to achieve key information and optimize the monitoring, analysis, and evaluation of water quality of natural ecosystems that have been highly transformed into agricultural areas. Using classification techniques like the hierarchical cluster analysis (CA) and partial triadic analysis (PTA), we assessed the sources of water pollution and the seasonal influence of human activities in water composition in a river basin from northeastern Spain. The results suggested that a strong connection existed between water quality and the seasonality of the human activities. The CA showed the spatial relationship between water chemistry and the adjacent land uses. The PTA associated the analyzed variables to their pollutant source. Electrical conductivity (EC), Cl−, SO4 2−–S, Na+, and Mg2+ ions were related with agricultural sources, whereas NH4 +–N, PT, and PO4 3−–P were linked with urban polluted sites. Concentration of NO3ˉ–N was associated with urban land use. Differences in water composition according to the irrigation intensity were also found during the irrigation season. The statistical tools used in this work, especially the PTA, allowed us to jointly analyze the spatial and seasonal components of water pollutant trends. We obtained a more comprehensive knowledge of water quality patterns in the study area, which will be essential when taking measures to minimize the effects of water pollution.This work is part of the AGUAFLASH project funded by the Program of Territorial Cooperation “Interreg IVB-SUDOE” (SOE1/P2/F146) which is funded by EU FEDER. Thanks are given to Comarca de Los Monegros for its consistent cooperation in the development of this project. We thank C. Pedrocchi, J. Cervantes, S. G. Eisman, M. García, S. Pérez and A. Barcos for their comments and their crucial assistance in the field and laboratory work. A. Calvo at CHE contributed with key formal cooperation to this work. We also wish to thank the AEMET (Spanish Meteorological Agency) for access to meteorological data. This work was also developed as Research Group E61 Aragon Goverment.Peer reviewe