Effect Of Non-Point Source Runoff And Urban Sewage On Yaque Del Norte River In Dominican Republic

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Int. J. Environment and Pollution, Vol. 31, Nos. 3/4, 2007

Effect of non-point source runoff and urban sewage on Yaque del Norte River in Dominican Republic Peter Phillips*
Department of Biology, Winthrop University, Rock Hill, South Carolina 29733, USA Fax: 803 323 3448 E-mail: phillipsp@winthrop.edu *Corresponding author

F. Arturo Russell
Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre yMaestra, Santiago de los Caballeros, República Dominicana Fax: 809 582 2947 E-mail: arussell@pucmmsti.edu.do

John Turner
Department of Biology, Winthrop University, Rock Hill, South Carolina 29733, USA Fax: 803 323 3448 E-mail: turnerj2@winthrop.edu
Abstract: A Yaque del Norte, Dominican Republic watershed survey monitored dissolved oxygen, eutrophication from point and non-point sources, andhigh conductivity resulting from agricultural runoff. The upper mainly forested watershed had good water quality except for untreated sewage from the city of Jarabacoa. The mid-watershed had a deforested landscape, mixed agriculture and the city of Santiago contributing nitrogen and phosphorus. The lower watershed had extensively-irrigated agriculture resulting in appreciably higher conductivity,as well as high nitrogen and phosphorus. Sedimentation from erosion is evident throughout the watershed. Managing the river’s land and water resources for all stakeholders is critical. Keywords: surface water quality; nitrogen; phosphorus; dissolved oxygen; turbidity; non-point source runoff; point sources; irrigation; Yaque del Norte River; Dominican Republic. Reference to this paper should bemade as follows: Phillips, P., Russell, F.A. and Turner, J. (2007) ‘Effect of non-point source runoff and urban sewage on Yaque del Norte River in Dominican Republic’, Int. J. Environment and Pollution, Vol. 31, Nos. 3/4, pp.244–266. Biographical notes: P. Phillips is an Associate Professor of Biology in the Department of Biology, Winthrop University, Rock Hill, South Carolina, USA, since 1999. Heconducts water quality research on the Catawba River basin in North and South Carolina. He was the recipient of a Fulbright Scholar Award in the summer of 2004; this funded the research effort in the Dominican Republic. He was previously a Research Scientist at Clark Atlanta University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, conducting research on bioremediation of contaminated water using a microbial mat basedtechnology.

Copyright © 2007 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

Effect of non-point source runoff and urban sewage
F.A. Russell is a Professor of Biology and Ecology in the Natural Sciences Department, Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra, Santiago, Dominican Republic. J. Turner is a Biology student (graduated December 2004), Department of Biology, Winthrop University, Rock Hill, SouthCarolina, USA.

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Introduction

In much of the world, there is a severe imbalance between freshwater supply, human consumption and population (Jackson et al., 2001). In the Dominican Republic (DR), per capita water availability is approximately 1,500 m3 per capita/year, the surface water supply is 20 × 109 m3/year and the groundwater supply is 1.5 × 109 m3/year. Extensive irrigationand high consumption in urban areas uses 10 × 109 m3/year, or 47% of total supply. In some regions of the country, there is a water scarcity problem as a result of poor management of irrigation, urban water supplies and tourist infrastructure. The Dominican Hydraulic Resources Institute (INDRHI) projects a future water deficit in the Yaque del Norte River (Banco Mundial, 2004), site of thecurrent study. Compounding the issue of water availability and consumption is the contamination of water supplies due to non-point source runoff and the lack of wastewater treatment facilities. The impact of this problem in DR’s largest watershed was the subject of this research.

1.1 Water quality and wastewater treatment in DR
There is a need for systematic monitoring of water quality in DR...