Evaluation of groundwater quality for drinking and irrigation purposes using physicochemical parameters at Salilah area, Madinah Munawarah District, Saudi Arabia

Evaluation of groundwater quality for drinking and irrigation purposes was carried out at the Salilah village, Madinah Munawarah District, KSA. Groundwater samples were collected from 20 wells in February 2018. The abundance of major cations is Na+ and Ca2+, and anions is Cl- followed by HCO3-. The total dissolved solids (TDS) values in the study area are more than 1000 mg/L, and 30% of the samples have nitrate concentration of 50 mg/L, indicating unsafe water for drinking. The sodium adsorption ratio of 90% of the samples indicate excellent water for irrigation and the remaining 10% indicate good water. The USSL diagram shows that all samples are of different salinity and sodium content. 80% of the samples have Na% less than 60 indicating good to permissible class. Residual sodium carbonate, permeability index and magnesium hazard values indicate safe water for irrigation. A proper management plan is necessary to preserve valuable groundwater resources.