World Journal of
Pharmaceutical and Life Sciences

SURVEILLANCE ON THE SHORT AND LONG TERM VARIATIONS OF pH IN THE LOWER AND UPPER ZONES OF A TROPICAL ESTUARY

Divya S. Rajan*

ABSTRACT

Wetlands of India are estimated to be the repositories of aquatic biodiversity .Kerala is one of the green states of India and is well known for its wetlands. Kerala contain a few wetlands of International importance including Vembanad lake, Ashtamudi and Sasthamcotta lake that are designated as Ramsar sites Having recognized the importance of Ashtamudi as a wetland ecosystem that is subjected to acute pressure owing to rapid reclamation activities and indiscriminate utilization in the name of development. The present initiative was proposed for the evaluation of short and long term variations in the pH of the surface and bottom waters of the Ashtamudi wetland. The distribution of pH clearly indicated that the low pH values especially at the surface water during the monsoon months were due to heavy fresh water discharge and the increased pH values observed as the season progressed are due to higher sea water intrusion. Gradual decrease in pH values towards upstream which showed the influence of sea water on pH. The relatively higher pH values were recorded during the pre-monsoon and post-monsoon months. The study will help to identify the intensity of degradation that caused deterioration of water quality due to inadequate waste disposal, eco-tourist wastes, poultry waste, slaughter waste, land reclamation, sand mining, retting, inadequate port facilities, oil spills from thousands of fishing boats, industrial waste, human excreta, hospital waste, plastics etc. It throws light on the fact to create a conscientization to conserve the biodiversity values of the creek by promoting a monitoring of the degraded water quality of the creek.

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