International Journal of Environmental Science and Development

Abstract—Uncontrolled movement of the population in cities and an increased number of productive activities have significantly influenced the increase in polluting factors in the environment and the level of pollution in river waters. This study aims to evaluate the water quality in the Lana, Tirana, and Ishmi rivers using the physical and chemical parameters, to understand their temporal (seasonal) and spatial dynamics. The use of the Geographical Information System (GIS) based on the water quality information system and spatial analysis with Inverse Distance Weighted Interpolation (IDW) enabled the design of water quality indicators for the rivers study. Sampling was carried out in ten stations and water quality indicators were monitored from 2018 to 2020 and analyzed by the National Environment Agency laboratory. Spatial-time maps of physicso-chemical parameters were analyzed. Assessment of water quality was realized by IDW-s methods which serve as the monitoring of stations by examining the sources of water pollution in rivers bed. Water quality maps aim to identify the main areas requiring river pollution control. The dominant pollutant component of the water is TP, which determines at Ishmi river.  The concentration of phosphates in water rivers was a great influence, with an average value for the year 2018 of 2.457 mg/L, and in 2020 reaches a value of 1.956 mg/L with an order TP> P_PO₄³- > N-NO₂-> N-NO₃-. This strategy can be used as an effective tool to improve real-time monitoring of water river quality.

Index Terms—Pollutant monitoring, water quality, maps, interpolation, sustainability, GIS.

Enkelejda Kucaj, Anira Gjoni, and Azem Bardhi are with the Department of Meteorology - Institute of GeoSciences, Polytechnic University of Tirana, Albania (e-mail: enkilusha@gmail.com, gjoni.anira@yahoo.com, bardhiazem@yahoo.com).
Marilda Osmani is with the Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Elbasan “Aleksandër Xhuvani”, Albania (e-mail: marilda.86@gmail.com).
Besim Kucaj is with the Department of Agro-Environmental, Agricultural University of Tirana, Tirana, Albania (e-mail: kucajbesim@gmail.com).
Dolores Bujku is with the Environmental Management and Urban Planning, Tirana, Albania (e-mail: doloresbujku30@outlook.com).

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Cite: Enkelejda Kucaj, Marilda Osmani, Anira Gjoni, Azem Bardhi, Besim Kucaj, and Dolores Bujku, "Assessment of Physico‑Chemical Characteristics of Lana, Tirana and Ishmi Rivers Using IDW Interpolation," International Journal of Environmental Science and Development vol. 13, no. 6, pp. 223-230, 2022.

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