Aplicación de índices integradores de calidad hídrica al pedemonte andino argentino

This paper presents the results from the application of the Water Quality Index (WQI) developed by the Canadian Council of Ministers of Environment in order to synthetically and graphically characterize water quality in large basins using a set of biological, physical and chemical parameters. This index allows the investigator to choose the parameters that are most important in a zone and that are also representative of the different water uses. This study presents the results obtained from an irrigation water quality database pertaining to two watersheds in the Argentine Andean foothills. The parameters and limits considered are based on those proposed by the General Irrigation Department of the province of Mendoza, an international agency (FAO), French water agencies (AE) and the country of Morocco whose environment is very similar to that of the one analyzed. It is concluded that the methodology leads to an overvaluation of the WQI Factor 1 and makes it possible to a) manipulate the results by including more/less favorable parameters in the construction of the index; b) modify this factor to decrease its weight in the calculation of the index and c) compare water quality among different irrigation sites and/or catchment basins, regardless of the limits detected.