Quality assessment of groundwater from the south-eastern Arabian Peninsula

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Abstract
Assessment of groundwater quality plays a significant role in the utilization of the scarce water resources globally and especially in arid regions. The increasing abstraction together with man-made contamination and seawater intrusion have strongly affected groundwater quality in the Arabia Peninsula, exemplified by the investigation given here from the United Arab Emirates, where the groundwater is seldom reviewed and assessed. In the aim of assessing current groundwater quality, we here present a comparison of chemical data linked to aquifers types. The results reveal that most of the investigated groundwater is not suitable for drinking, household, and agricultural purposes following the WHO permissible limits. Aquifer composition and climate have vital control on the water quality, with the carbonate aquifers contain the least potable water compared to the ophiolites and Quaternary clastics. Seawater intrusion along coastal regions has deteriorated the water quality and the phenomenon may become more intensive with future warming climate and rising sea level.
Funding Information
  • the Fundamental Research Funds for the 111 Project, Ministry of Education and State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs, China (B08048)
  • Special Fund of State Key Laboratory of Hydrology-Water Resources and Hydraulic Engineering (515045612)
  • Financial support from the United Arab Emirate University (UPAR 31S114)
  • the program sponsored for scientific innovation research of college graduate in Jiangsu province in 2016 (KYZZ16_0277)
  • the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (2016B04214)

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