Assessing Surface Water Quality in In-Field Water Bodies in Ben Tre Province, Vietnam

Abstract

Water is essential for all life. The study was conducted to assess surface
water quality in in-field water bodies of Ben Tre province in 2020.
Surface water samples were taken in the dry and rainy seasons at nine
representative sites (VT1 to VT9). Temperature, pH, turbidity, salinity,
dissolved oxygen (DO), suspended solids (TSS), biochemical oxygen
demand (BOD), chemical oxygen (COD), ammonium (N-NH4
+
), nitrate
(N-NO3
-
), orthophosphate (P-PO4
3-
), iron (Fe) and Coliform were used
for water quality assessment by comparing with the national technical
regulation on surface water quality QCVN 08-MT:2015/BTNMT,
column B1. The results showed that surface water was polluted by TSS,
BOD, and Fe. The highest salinity was at 7.9‰ in the dry season. TSS
and BOD were high in the rainy season while DO and Fe were high in
the dry season. Temperature, pH, COD, N-NH4
+
, N-NO3
-
, P-PO4
3- and
Coliform were within the limits of QCVN 08-MT:2015/BTNMT,
column B1. However, the risk of eutrophication is still exist due to the
presence of nutrients. The more pollution of water source in the dry
season could limit the water use. Sources of water pollution could be
from agricultural production and human activities. Future study should
focus on investigating concrete water pollution sources and
appropriate measures should be taken to improve the current water
quality problems.