Spatial and temporal variability in the Quality of Surface water in a semi-arid mediterranean region (river orontes- Lebanon)

The Orontes River is an international river, with its headwaters in Lebanon, its middle section in Syria and its mouth in Turkey. Fresh surface waters were sampled monthly during the year 2000 and analyzed for major ions and for trace metals. Sea-salt aerosols in rainwater partially influence the major ion composition in the river. The concentration of major cations and anions fall within the range of the most common natural Concentration of major ion assemblages established for world river(MCNC), with a cation and anion dominance in the order of Ca > Mg > Na> K and HCO3 > SO4 > Cl, which tend to be predominantly influenced by chemical weathering of rocks and minerals in a semi-arid region. Ca and HCO3 are mostly derived from the dissolution of carbonate rocks. The sources of SO4 could be attributed to anhydrite minerals and to anthropogenic impact from fertilizers. Increases in nutrient concentrations are attributed mainly to the increasing influence of agricultural runoff. δ18 0/ δH plots shows that the data either fits the Mediterranean Meteoric Water Line(MMWL) or have elevated values that indicate evaporative isotope enrichment in a semi-arid climate. The correlation matrix for trace elements shows a high coefficient of correlation for Fe, Zn and Cu indicating that these elements could be controlled by the same chemistry in water. The bicarbonate-alkaline type of Orontes surface water contribute to the formation of trace metals-carbonate complexes such as FeCO3(aq) and ZnCO3 (aq). The good correlation between Pb, Cd and Cr reflects the effect of increasing urbanization in the catchments. (author)