Based on Water Quality Index, An Assessment of the Water Quality at Some Areas of Anbar City, West Iraq

The chemical characteristics of water quality index for water which were supplied from some areas of Anbar city were carried out in order to determine the quality of the water for the drink and domestic purposes. Based on several chemical parameters, the water quality index can provide a number which expresses the overall quality of the water in any sample. In this paper, 9 wells water samples and 8 raw waters were collected between January and April 2017 and analyzed for the following ions pH, turbidity (Tur), electrical conductivity (EC), total hardness (TH), alkalinity suspended solids (SSs), total suspended solids (TSS) and total dissolved solids (TDSs) by standard methods. According to the McCarty and Sawyer total hardness classification, all samples (wells and raw water) were very hard waters (THgreater than180 mg/L). The normal range of pH values for raw water is ranged from 6.5-8.5, while for the wells water is ranged from 6-8.5. In general, the pH value which is less than 6.5 refers to acidity of water. While, the value that is above 8.5 refer to basicity of the water. The results of pH values have ranged between 7.1-8.4 and registered good water quality. Also, from the electrical conductivity (EC) values it was observed that all the water samples (raw and wells) registered very high values reached to 11000 s/cm-1 which means that the study areas are of high mineralization because the electrical conductivity indicates mineralization level. The high degree of mineralization suggests long contact time of water with geological formation and soil of the study areas. The chloride concentration registered a varied value between 2178-57 (mg/L). The total hardness values ranged from 320 to 2948 (mg/L) Based on total hardness classification of Sawyer and McCarty, all the water samples classified as very hard water (total hardness values greater than300 mg/L) (Table 2). In Table 4 all the water quality index values were included. It was observed that none of all water samples registered water quality index=100. The raw waters which obtained from the river registered a fair water quality with average rating (WQI= 35.9) indicating polluted water and unacceptable for potable which implied unsuitable water for direct consumption without pretreatment. While the water of the wells registered a medium to good quality which implied simple treatment is necessary to the water before human consumptions regardless the good rating while the medium quality required to conventional and advance treatment before consumption.