Ecological Health Assessment of Renuka Lake, Himachal Pradesh, India

Autor: Yeshi Choden, M. P. Sharma, Gaurav Pandey, S. K. Gupta and K. D. Dema
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2022
Předmět:
Zdroj: Nature Environment and Pollution Technology, Vol 21, Iss 1, Pp 167-174 (2022)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 0972-6268
2395-3454
DOI: 10.46488/NEPT.2022.v21i01.018
Popis: Researchers, policymakers, and governments are increasingly interested in assessing the ecological health (EH) of lakes and streams. The EH of a lake can be expressed in terms of water quality, trophic state and biodiversity of riparian vegetation, macroinvertebrates and fishes. The ecological health index (EHI) of Renuka lake, Himachal Pradesh of India, was analyzed based on National Sanitation Foundation Water Quality Index (NSFWQI), Carlson’s Trophic State Index (TSI), Simpson Diversity Index (SDI), and Shannon-Weiner index (SWI). The results of NSFWQI and CTSI are found in the range of 40-59 and 49.9-58.9 respectively indicating that the water quality was poor to medium and not suitable for drinking purposes but can be used for secondary purposes such as agriculture, industry, and recreation etc. The trophic state of the lake is similarly in the eutrophic range, with an overall EHI of 1.81-2.47, indicating poor to medium trophic status. Apart from analyzed results, the EH category from mesotrophic to a eutrophic state of the lake is caused due to the cultural siltation/nutrient loading, religious practices, land tenurial issues, and uncontrolled tourist pressure followed by recreational activities on water bodies and lake vicinity. Accordingly, suitable restoration methods such as source control, desilting/dredging, and lake aquatic plantation are suggested to recover the ecological health of the lake back to a mesotrophic or oligotrophic state.
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