Analysis of groundwater quality for irrigation purposes in shallow aquifers: A case study from West Aceh, Indonesia

The aim of this study is to evaluate the groundwater quality in shallow aquifers from West Aceh, Sumatra, for irrigation uses. Groundwater samples have been collected from 32 stations for pH, electrical conductivity (EC), sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), total dissolved solids (TDS), sodium percentage (per cent Na) and residual sodium carbonate (RSC) analysis. Evaluation of water quality for irrigation using the United States Salinity Laboratory classifications suggests that the majority of the groundwater samples are good for irrigation. The crop tolerance of irrigation water salinity, as based on EC value, showed that paddy (rice), soybeans and sweet tomatoes are suitable for agricultural cultivation, but that corn and field beans are not suitable. Results indicate that, if used for agricultural irrigation, the groundwater quality ranges from excellent to good, except for a few locations (e.g. Meureubo sub-district) which indicate signs of deterioration.