Assessment of the physico-chemical quality of the Bandama water River at Lamto Scientific Reserve (West Africa, Côte d’Ivoire)

The Bandama water River at Lamto Scientific Reserve plays a vital role in protecting and renewing fish stocks.Indeed, the part of this river shelters spawning grounds zones of fish, allowing them to replenish their stocks.Besides this importance, the water quality is subject to the human activities effects carried out upstream of the river.The aim of this study was to assess the water quality from the parameters determined.Ten physico-chemical parameters (Temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, Total Dissolved Solids, electrical conductivity, Transparency, NO2 -, NO3 -, NH4 + and PO4 3-) were measured at three stations from March 2021 to February 2022.These data were subjected to statistical analysis to highlight the spatial variability and seasonal variation of the parameters studied, as well as their contribution to the discrimination of stations.Data were compared with the existing standard values.The results did not reveal significant variability in the physico-chemical parameters distribution depending on the stations.However, the water studied exhibits poor quality during the rainy seasons.In addition, this water is warm, basic, cloudy, and less oxygenated.The nutrient salt concentrations of nitrite, nitrate, and ammonium tend towards the tolerable standard indicated to trigger eutrophication of the environment.However, the orthophosphate contents are well above the indicated standard.These salt contents, if they increase, could have a direct influence on water pollution by the mass development of plants.These results challenge managers and planners about the water quality degradation in this part of the Bandama River, which is supposed to be protected.