Assessment of Groundwater Quality Composition in the Pervomaisky District of the Republic of Crimea

Abstract

The purpose is to assess the quality of groundwater supplied to the population of the Pervomaisky District of the Republic of Crimea and to identify rural settlements, on the territory of which it is necessary to take measures to provide residents with water that meets quality standards. Materials and methods. The qualitative composition and properties of water samples taken from the main sources of water supply to the population of Pervomaisky district in 2021 were analysed, integral indicators characterising the safety of water for human health and its suitability for irrigation of household plots were determined. Results and discussions. Water resources of more than 90 % of exploited groundwater intakes of the Pervomaisky district are characterised by high content of pollutants. The main indicators for which exceeding the established requirements were detected include: mineralisation, chloride content, total hardness. During the comprehensive assessment of water safety for public health it was found that only 11 wells out of 54 can be used without restrictions. During the studies of water suitability for irrigation it was revealed that in all investigated water intakes, except for two used for water supply of the Yelenovka and Kamenka villages, the value of potential salinity index exceeded 5 mg-eq/dm3 , which indicates the risk of accumulation of toxic salts in the soil. Conclusions. Practically for all surveyed groundwater intakes, it is necessary to carry out water treatment before water supply to consumers. It is advisable to start implementation of these actions from wells located in the territory of the Abrikosovskoye, Gvardeyskoye, Grishinskoye, Krestyanovskoye, Pervomaiskoye, Pravdovskoye and Sarybashskoye rural settlements.