Physicochemical and Heavy Metal Assessment of Groundwater and Evaluation of Wastewater Treatment Efficiency

Abstract

Groundwater quality is an important environmental and public health concern, particularly in regions affected by agricultural activities, industrialization, and inadequate wastewater management. The recent study evaluates the physicochemical characteristics and heavy metal contamination of groundwater and assesses the treatment efficiency of wastewater. Groundwater samples were analyzed for parameters with pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, hardness, major ions, and selected heavy metals.  The pH of groundwater samples ranged from 6.87 to 8.07, while EC, total hardness, and TDS varied from 331.4–3675 µS cm⁻¹, 88–492 mg L⁻¹, and 213–1562 mg L⁻¹, respectively. Cadmium, chromium, nickel, and lead showed no significant contamination, while minor variations were observed for other investigated metals. STP performance was satisfactory, with mean TSS decreasing from 493.58 to 12.98 mg L⁻¹, COD from 783.58 to 27.45 mg L⁻¹, and BOD₅ from 411.53 to 5.28 mg L⁻¹. The corresponding removal efficiencies were 97.4%, 96.5%, and 98.7%, respectively. The findings can support appropriate water-quality management strategies and sustainable utilization of groundwater resources.