Modeling Approach for Water-Quality Management to Control Pollution Concentration: A Case Study of Ravi River, Punjab, Pakistan

Abstract

One of the challenging problems of Punjab, the most populous province of Pakistan, is the surface water-quality problem of the Ravi River, which flows through the main cities of the province. At present, the overall status of water quality is very polluted, primarily due to residential and industrial wastewater directly discharged into the Ravi River through a network of drains. Due to the poor quality of the water, the river ecosystem is not favorable for the aquatic and surrounding environment. Hence, management options are proposed to reduce pollution. Therefore, the study was formulated to identify the main sources of pollution along the Ravi River and their potential impact on the course of the river channel. In addition, the study applied a numerical model WASP 8.1 (Water Quality Simulation Program) to discover the best strategy for the improvement of water quality. Through the model simulation it was found that, if the flow at headwater and link canals is increased up to 50%, along with 75% improvement in the pollution concentration of drains through wastewater-treatment facilities, the water quality of the Ravi River can be improved up to an acceptable limit of water-quality standards.

Keywords

• WASP 8.1
• Ravi River
• Punjab province
• water-quality modeling
• wastewater treatment
• scenario analysis