Preliminary assessment of domestic well water quality and heavy metal contamination near Orathupalayam dam, India

Industrial effluents and wastewater containing elevated levels of heavy metals pose significant threats to water quality and groundwater, potentially leading to severe health risks.The physicochemical parameters and concentrations of heavy metals, including Cadmium (Cd), Chromium (Cr), Lead (Pb), Nickel (Ni), and Zinc (Zn), along with pollution indices of well water,were analyzed using standard procedures. The water samples exhibited alkaline properties and high electrical conductivity withheavy metal concentrations of 0.47 ± 0.07 mg/Lfor Cd, 0.038 ± 0.01 mg/Lfor Pb, 0.10 ± 0.02 mg/Lfor Ni, and 0.58 ± 0.05 mg/Lfor Zn, while Cr was below detection limits. The average Geoaccumulation index values for Cd, Ni, and Pb were 2.657, 1.763, and 1.287, respectively, whereas the Heavy Metal Pollution index exceeded 100 for all samples. The contamination factor values followed the order of Cd > Ni > Pb > Zn, and all samples had a Pollution Load Index above 1. The results indicated that Cd is a moderately strong pollutant, whereas Ni and Pb are moderate pollutants. This study provides a crucial baseline for assessing the migration of heavy metals from well water to vegetables, and ultimately to humans.