Abstract:
Water quality is defined by its physical, chemical, and biological parameters per established standards for its various uses. This study primarily focused on analyzing temporal and spatial variations of water quality parameters in the Colombo Metropolitan Wetlands. Primary and secondary data were used for this study. SPSS and ArcGIS Pro software were used for data analysis. Water samples were collected from 18 water sampling locations for this research. Physical and chemical parameters such as pH value, Ammonia Concentration, Dissolved Oxygen (DO), Phosphate Concentration, Turbidity, and Temperature were used to assess water quality. The parameters used in this study were compared between 2012 and 2022 to assess whether they exhibited a declining trend. By 2022, the pH value has marginally increased in comparison to 2012. When considering Colombo Metropolitan wetlands, the ammonia levels were lower in 2022 that in 2012. In 2012, several locations had dissolved oxygen concentrations within the recommended limit of 6 mg/L. However, by 2022, multiple analyzed water sources showed dissolved oxygen levels falling below the acceptable threshold. A comparison of phosphate concentrations between 2012 and 2022 indicated slight fluctuations. Turbidity levels decreased by 2022 compared to 2012. Although the temperature showed minor variations, its overall value remained consistent between the two years.
