Integrated approach to quality indices and health risk assessment of water in the Bahr Yusuf Canal, Fayoum, Egypt

The Bahr Yusuf Canal is the life artery of the Fayoum Province, which provides the province with two thirds of the freshwater quota from the Nile River. The present work was carried out to assess the suitability of water in the Bahr Yusuf Canal for various purposes and to assess the potential health risk associated with metal content. The results showed that the water quality of Bahr Yusuf was classified as poor and very poor for recreational use according to the Oregon WQI. On the other hand, the Aquatic Toxicity Index indicated the suitability of water for all fish species. The Canadian WQI and the Weighted Arithmetic WQI classified the canal water as good (WQI = 92), fair (WQI = 73) & marginal (WQI = 64) and excellent, poor to good & good to excellent for irrigation, drinking and aquatic life, respectively. Despite the significant contamination of water with heavy metals (as indicated by the Heavy Pollution Index, ranging from 104.44 to 206.32, from 16.81 to 38.48 and from 219.07 to 472.24 μg l⁻¹), the Hazard Quotient (HQ) and the Hazard Index (HI) data indicate that water of Bahr Yusuf does not pose a human health risk through ingestion or dermal contact. In general, the study showed that water in the Bahr Yusuf Canal is characterized by different levels of pollution, which requires rapid and critical intervention by responsible authorities to prevent the discharge of different types of waste and further deterioration of the water quality during the lifetime of the channel and its subsequent rehabilitation.