EVALUATION OF THE WATER QUALITY OF WATER BODIES MONITORED BY THE NATIONAL WATER AGENCY IN SÃO LUÍS-MA

Abstract

Monitoring watercourses is an essential action in the sustainable management of water resources and in ensuring their multiple uses. In this perspective, water quality indices stand out as an important tool to characterize water quality, by providing objective and interpretable information. Thus, the main objective of this work was to evaluate the water quality of three rivers monitored by the National Water Agency, the Anil, Tibiri and Paciência rivers located on São Luís Island. Data were collected and tabulated from the HidroWeb Portal, which refers to the conventional collection of hydrometeorological data, the time series used was from 2017 to 2019. The physical-chemical parameters analyzed were water temperature, air temperature, hydrogen potential, oxygen dissolved and turbidity, which suffer from the direct impacts of activities carried out in the area of a watershed. The results found in this research were compared with CONAMA Resolution No. 357 of March 17, 2005 and are in accordance with the legislation. These investigated rivers constitute brackish water masses, with low data variation and with gaps in information about many parameters. However, the analysis of some data indicated some environmental problems. In this way, it is recommended to reduce the pollutants caused in the watersheds, causing people to minimize the impacts that are occurring in the water body, reducing the discharge of effluents into the water, also proposing educational measures for the whole society.