| Summary: | Thesis (MTech (Environmental Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2010 === Freshwater scarcity and river pollution has become a serious challenge for governments
and scientists. Worldwide, governments have a responsibility to provide their populations
with enough clean water for their domestic needs. Scientists will have an enormous task
to find a way to purify polluted water, because of its vital role in human lives and an
increasing demand for water consumption due to population growth. Although the water
from the Bottelary River is used on a daily basis for farming activities, its pollution level
as well as spatial distribution of effluents in the catchment is unknown. In the present
study, I took monthly water samples from six sampling points for laboratory analysis.
The laboratory determined concentration levels of phosphorous, chloride, nitrate, and
nitrate nitrogen (N03N), as well as the chemical oxygen demand (COD) and suspended
solids from the samples. On the same occasion's pH, dissolved oxygen, electrical
conductivity and temperature were measured in-situ using a multi-parameter reader. The
results were then compared with the South African Water Quality Guidelines for Aquatic
Ecosystems and for irrigation (DWAF, 1996a, 1996c). The non-point pollution source
(NPS) model was used to generate predictions of the pollution level from the land-uses
and use the data obtained from the field to validate the model predictions. Finally, I
performed a two-factorial A One-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) without
replication to assess the spatial and temporal variation of the measured variables along
the river.
The findings of the study have shown that the concentration levels of some compounds
are below the Target Water Quality Range (TWQR) set by the Department of Water
Affairs and Forestry (DWAF, 1996a, 1996b, 1996c) while, the concentrations of chloride,
total nitrogen and water quality variables such as electrical conductivity, suspended
solids, are higher than the TWQR (DWAF, 1996a, 1996b, 1996c). Based on the above
findings water of the Bottelary River can have negative effects on the environment and
human lives because of the concentration level of these compounds. It was therefore
recommended that, environmentally friendly measures and practices must be undertaken
in order to decrease the pollution and avoid further pollution of the river.
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