Investigation of Possible Pollution by Some Trace Elements and Some Environmental Factors in Water of the Euphrates River in Suq Al Shioukh Southern Iraq

The present study was conducted in the Suq Al Shioukh district, southeast of Thi Qar Province, Iraq. The study area is located within an agricultural area whose population greatly depends on the river water for their various uses, so it is expected that the river water will be polluted by agricultural activities and domestic waste water nearby. Therefore, the study aimed to investigate the levels of possible mineral pollution with some trace elements and some physicochemical factors in the water quality of the Euphrates River in the study area and to obtain useful recommendations that help improve the water quality of the river and its use for agricultural and domestic purposes. The levels of mineral pollution trace elements using the Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer in the river's water were investigated. The study recorded an increase in the values of cadmium, lead, and zinc during the summer and copper during the spring in the waters of the Euphrates River, exceeding the permissible limits when compared with international and Iraqi standards and for all study stations. The concentrations of the Cd element ranged from 0.64 to 4.64 mg/L, while Pb recorded concentrations between 0.15 and 3.98 mg/L, Cu ranged from 0.82 to 4.14 mg/L, and Zn reached values ranging from 3.67 to 30.82 mg/L. Other factors, such as sewage, Al-Masab Alamm water, and climatic factors, also contribute to the pollution of the river's water through some physical and chemical factors. The study also showed turbidity values high above the permissible limits, ranging from 10.6 to 22.45 NTU. As for the pH, they tended to have a light alkalinity; their values ranged from 7.12 to 8.73, EC values ranged from 7421 to 16520 µS/cm, and TDS recorded values of 3920 to 10320 mg/L. It was also found that the water is salty in the stations studied, as the salinity values ranged from 11.62 to 31.75 ppt. The CL values ranged between 210 and 370 mg/L, while SO4 recorded values between 260 and 581 mg/L, and PO4 values ranged between 0.08 and 1.31 mg/L.