Assessment of the Upstream Water Quality of a Narrow River using Numerical Modelling

Abstract

Water quality in Nhue River has been degraded to alarming level, which had some dead parts. Applying MIKE which is a modeling tool for upstream water quality assessment in Nhue River is feasible and reliable. The tool not only simulates results but also helps users assess scenarios and select suitable the scenarios for decision making. In the scenario 1, the water of Nhue River would be polluted more seriously than 2020 and later years because of untreated waste water and fast growth of population and socio-economy. Therefore, the scenario 1 is not suitable for future management planning. In the scenario 2, if 40% of waste stream was treated and the concentration of pollutant in the stream reduced as national regulation, the water quality in Nhue River would continue to decrease slowly but the concentration of pollutants in 2010 would not be slightly different to the figure for 2012. The scenario 2 could be applied in a short-term plan of improving water quality in Nhue River. In the scenario 3, if the waste stream was treated perfectly before discharging into the river, the water quality would improve significantly and no longer be heavy pollution which means that most parameters for water quality would lower than those in 08/2008 regulation. Therefore, the scenario 3 was an optimal scenario for decision makers in management levels.