A Review on Water Quality Assessment in Local Wetlands Using Physiochemical Parameters
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.59436/jsiane.v6i2.12.2583-2093Keywords:
Wetlands; Water quality assessment; Physiological parameters; Biomonitoring; Water Quality Index (WQI); Freshwater ecology; Fish physiology; Biological indicators.Abstract
Wetlands are essential freshwater ecosystems that possess significant ecological importance. Wetlands are crucial for the provision of a variety of services such as water purification, groundwater recharge, regulation of floods, nutrient cycling, and carbon storage, apart from providing habitats to many aquatic species. However, human activities such as urbanization, agricultural runoff, industrial discharge, and sewage have recently resulted in deterioration of the wetlands. Traditional approach of water quality monitoring involves the measuring of parameters like temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), nutrients, and microbial parameters. Although these parameters are important for providing information about the chemical properties of water bodies, they are not adequate for showing the impact of these water quality parameters on aquatic organisms' biology. In this context, this paper seeks to assess the water quality in wetlands with the use of physiological indicators along with traditional monitoring methods. A PRISMA-based literature review has been conducted using peer-reviewed articles, standard literature on limnology and environmental guidelines. The review also assesses the contribution of physiological indicators such as fish respiration behaviour, operculum activity, gasping respiration, condition factor, feeding behaviour, and reproduction along with other biological indicators namely plankton, benthos, amphibians, and aquatic macrophytes towards the determination of wetlands' ecological health. Lastly, the paper also reviews the utility of Water Quality Index (WQI) and biomonitoring methods in wetland assessment. The review suggests that combining physiological, biological, and chemical parameters is a better alternative to assess the health of wetlands than depending on traditional water chemistry alone. Finally, education gaps in long-term monitoring, seasonal assessment, and studies on indicators have been identified and beneficial recommendations for the future work have been made.
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