Evaluation of the Water Quality Status and Pollution Load Carrying Capacity of Way Umpu River, Way Kanan District, Lampung Province, Indonesia, Based on Land Use

Abstract

This research aims to evaluate the water quality status and pollution load-carrying capacity of the Way Umpu River based on land use. This was carried out using the survey method by directly measuring the river water debit, pH, temperature, and dissolved oxygen (DO) on-site, taking the water sample to analyze the parameters of water quality such as total dissolved solid (TDS), total suspended solid (TSS), water color, turbidity, salinity, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), fecal coli, total coliform, and plankton in the lab, and monitoring the land use. The results showed that the use of land for illegal mining and the settlement of inhabitants in station-4 (ST-4) caused water pollution. Furthermore, based on Class III water use, the parameters in ST-4 exceeded the standards for TSS, color, and BOD, while other stations such as ST-1, ST-2, ST-3, ST-5, and ST-6 showed clean and good water quality statuses. It was also found that the pollution load-carrying capacity of the Way Umpu River has not yet been exceeded for Class III and the quality of the water may be improved when the river water debit increases. In addition, the plankton community structure on ST-1, ST-2, and ST-3 showed the number of species and individuals, and the diversity index was relatively high compared to ST-4, ST-5, and ST-6. It was concluded that the integrated evaluation was based on water quality status, plankton community structure, and pollution load analyses. The land use for illegal mining will decrease the water quality and the plankton community structure compared to other land uses.