6. Analysis of Chemical Characteristics of Fluoride-Rich Waters in Deeper Coastal Aquifers of Alappuzha District, Kerala State, South India for Domestic and Irrigation Purposes

The population of the coastal district of Alappuzha depends mainly on groundwater for domestic needs. The poor quality of surface and shallow groundwater conditions, deeper aquifers are heavily exploited by the population. Analysis of chemical characteristics of Fluoride-rich waters in deeper coastal aquifers of the area is very much required for testing its uses for various needs. The concentration of fluoride in groundwater above the permissible limit WHO (World Health Organization) has been reported in many Tehsils of the district. The presence of amphiboles (Hornblende), fluorapatite, fluorite, and micas may be responsible for the F⁻ in groundwater (Todd, Groundwater Hydrology, John Wiley, New York, 2005). Fluoride contamination above the maximum permissible limit may cause mottling of teeth, dental caries, dental fluorosis, and skeletal fluorosis (Karanth, Ground water assessment, development and management. Tata McGraw-Hill Ltd, New Delhi, 1987). The water quality studies were done by Sen (J Am Stat Assoc 63:1379–1389, 1968), Handa (Groundwater 13:275–281, 1975), Seyhan et al. (Water Resour Res 21:1010–1024, 1985), Razack and Dazy (J Hydrol 114:371–393, 1990), Malini et al. (Int J Environ Stud 60:87–98, 2003), Jeevanandam et al. (Environ Monit Assess 132:263–274, 2006), Olobaniyi and Owoyemi (Afr J Sci Technol Sci Eng Ser 7:73–81, 2006), and many others. The present work on the analysis of chemical characteristics of Fluoride-rich waters in deeper coastal aquifers of Alappuzha District, Kerala State, South India for domestic and irrigation purposes is an attempt to know the variables controlling the water quality of deeper groundwater reservoirs using statistical tools.