Post-Tsunami Changes in Water Quality of Kalpakkam Coastal Waters,East Coast of India with Special Reference to Nutrients

Abstract

Studies were carried out to evaluate the changes in water quality of Kalpakkam coast during post-Tsunami with special emphasis on nutrient contents. Samples were collected fortnightly from five locations, both surface and bottom at each location, during the period January-May 2006. Results revealed marginal decrease in DO (from 5.76 to 5.21 mg l $^{-1}$ ), increase in nitrate (from 1.14 to 3.43 μmol l $^{-1}$ ), silicate (from 5.55 to 7.20 μmol l $^{-1}$ ), phosphate (from 0.19 to 0.25 μmol l $^{-1}$ ) and decrease in chlorophyll-a content (from 6.15 to 4.34 mg m $^{-3}$ ) during the post-Tsunami period. Increase in nutrient contents did not commensurate with increase in chlorophyll possibly due to increase in turbidity in the coastal waters during the post-Tsunami period. A baseline data on TP and TN has been established for this coastal waters for future impact studies.