ASSESSMENT OF HEAVY METALS CONTAMINATION IN THE SHALLOW GROUNDWATER OF THE PIEDMONT AND HIGHLANDS PHYSIOGRAPHIC PROVINCES IN NORTHERN NEW JERSEY

Groundwater is a vital source of drinking water for residents in northern New Jersey. Anthropogenic activities in the piedmont and highlands physiographic provinces have caused a deterioration of the groundwater quality over the years as a result of mining urbanization, agriculture and industrial development. Data from fifty eight groundwater monitoring wells containing concentrations of major cations and anions and heavy metals were analyzed. The metals of interest in this research are arsenic, aluminum, cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, lead, and manganese. Piper diagram was used to identify the water types in the study area. Principal component analysis, correlation analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis was used to identify the sources of these metals into the groundwater. Water quality index (WQI), heavy metal pollution index (HPI), and heavy metal evaluation index (HEI) was used to assess the quality of the groundwater for drinking purposes. The inverse distance weighted (IDW) interpolation technique on ArcGIS Pro was used to create spatial maps of the concentrations of the metals, HPI, and HEI to identify hotspots of metal contamination in the area and areas with good water quality. This research will provide recommendations for pollution prevention, groundwater management strategies, and regulatory interventions to protect vulnerable populations and safeguard environmental health.

Keywords: groundwater, heavy metals, pollution indices, WQI