Abstract

The present study highlights the physio-chemical characteristics of soil and groundwater contamination due to migration of leachate. The selected site is the Ghazipur landfill site near eastern part of Delhi, India. The presence of landfill sites in densely populated regions affects the health of humans, animals and plants residing in the surrounding areas. In this paper the extent of contamination on the basis of physio-chemical characteristics of water and soil affecting neighboring regions has been studied. Ghazipur landfill site was installed to regulate the percolation of rainwater into the soil subsequently reaching the groundwater and changing its quality parameters. In this study 8 different locations in a radius of 8km around the Ghazipur landfill site were selected measure the concentration of chloride (Cl-), sulphate (SO4--), Nitrate(NO3-) along with total dissolved solids, hardness etc. The Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS) technique was used to determine the abundance of heavy metals like Zinc (Zn), Cadmium (Cd), Copper (Cu), Chromium (Cr) and Iron (Fe). Soil and water samples were collected from the same sites. The water analysis report was obtained from Water Testing Laboratory, Uttar Pradesh Jal Nigam, Quarsi Ramghat Road, Aligarh, India for parameters such as pH value, total dissolved solids (TDS), total hardness (as CaCO3), total alkalinity (as CaCO3), chloride (as Cl),Iron (as Fe), Nitrate (as NO3), Fluoride (as F), sulphate (as SO4) and electrical conductivity(EC), while soil testing was done at Soil Testing Laboratory, Aligarh, India for parameters pH, EC, Organic Carbon (OC), available phosphorous (P), nitrogen (N) and potassium (K). All the parameters were compared with specific standards given by Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS10500-2012) to ensure the availability of safe drinking water for Indian citizens.