Studies on the effluent characteristics of Pharma and Sugar industries and its impact on the water quality of Dehradun region

Abstract

Water a naturally occurring resource due to industrialization has high levels of contaminants including heavy metals which make it unsuitable for use. Therefore it is essential to examine the quality of water in any region, so as to understand its impact on human and the environment. newline newline newlineThe newly incepted state of Uttarakhand has witnessed a spurt of industrial units. The present study was undertaken to collect data on the selected physicochemical characteristics and heavy metals in the pharmaceutical industry, sugar industry and distillery effluents, and the ground water in Dehradun region. newline newline newlineTwo locations in the Dehradun region were selected during 2011 to 2013. They were Selaqui industrial area having pharmaceutical industries from where effluent samples were collected from sites namely A1, A2, A3 and A4 and groundwater D1. Other was Doiwala region, the samples included sugar mill effluent B, distillery effluent C and groundwater D2. Sampling was done seasonally as, pre-monsoon during March April, monsoon during July August, post-monsoon during October November and winter during December January. Effluent samples were collected from drains of the industrial units. newlineStandard methods were adopted to analyze the physicochemical parameters. The colour, temperature, pH, EC, TH and TDS of the pharmaceutical effluent, sugar and distillery effluents were in accordance of BIS. BOD and COD for most of the samples was above the desirable limit of CPCB. newlineAmong the heavy metals recorded in the pharmaceutical, sugar mill and distillery effluents, Chromium, Lead and Iron were above the permissible limit. The concentration of Chromium Lead, Cadmium, Iron and Cobalt were more than the acceptable limit as per BIS and WHO guidelines for drinking water. newlineThe present study revealed that the groundwater of the Dehradun industrial area requires suitable waste treatment procedures to bring down the level of contamination in the industrial effluents within the environmental tolerance limit. newline newline newline