Surface and Ground Water Quality in Eli River Valley, China

Water is the major limiting factor in agriculture in arid and semi arid regions. The shortage of water resources of good quality is becoming an important issue. The main goal of this study is to analyze the quality of ground and surface water in Eli River Valley and analyze the feasibility of the use of ground and surface water for irrigation in the study area. On the basic of the monitored data of surface and ground water in Eli River Valley in August of 2008, the water quality were evaluated .The results showed that the mean anion concentrations occur in the order SO₄ ^2- > Cl^- and cations in the order Ca²⁺>Na⁺ > Mg²⁺ > K⁺ for groundwater while mean anion concentrations occur in the order SO₄ ²⁺ > Cl^- and cations in the order Na⁺ > Ca²⁺ > Mg²⁺ > K⁺ for surface water. The type of groundwater is moderately saline while the type of surface water is slightly saline. Both surface and ground water could be used for irrigation. In the study area, we can solve the problem of water shortage by conjunctive use of ground and surface water.