Mapping Water Quality of Alibaug Mangrove Forest Using RS and GIS, Maharashtra, India

The present study was undertaken to assess the status of the mangrove forest of Alibaug, Maharashtra, India with respect to different sixteen physicochemical parameters of water using Geographical Information System (GIS). The Base map of study area was prepared using topographic map and the remote sensing data of Landsat 2 ETM+ for spatial analysis. To delineate the distributions of water pollutants inverse distance weighted (IDW) GIS approach were used. . The results showed that the amounts of EC, COD, hardness, O&G, Cl-, Na+, Ca 2+, Mg2+, NO3- and PO43- are higher than the normal range due to natural processes and human activity, industrial and domestic wastewater disposal, oil spillage and agricultural runoff which all eventually affect the water quality of mangrove forest of Alibaug. Suitability map classified the water to six classes of suitability in order of moderate> moderate to high> low to moderate> high> low suitable. The result of the study proves the use of GIS as a powerful tools in addressing monitoring program of the water quality in the mangrove ecosystems

Keywords:

mangrove Forest , RS and GIS , Water quality