Water quality assessment of Ninglad stream using benthic macroinvertebrates

Ninglad stream of city Bhowali, Uttarakhand (India) was chosen to assess the impact of organic pollution from the city on the water quality and the dilution/self-cleansing effect of further joining of tributaries as river flows and traverse a course of 8 km from the city Bhowali to d/s of Kainchi temple. The present paper reports the sampling, pre-identification and complete identification of macroinvertebrates together with measurement of physico-chemical parameters and calculation of % abundance of families of various macroinvertebrates taxonomic groups, identified upto family level, from both the sites. The water quality was assessed using Nepalese biotic score system as well as national sanitation foundation water quality index. A comparison of both the system revealed the same water quality classes indicating the complete applicability of NEPBIOS as a tool for assessment of ecological status of stream & rivers in Hindu-Kush Himalayan (HKH) region. However, the development of a bio-assessment tool for India is being developed because different macroinvertebrate taxa is available in different parts of the country. The taxonomic keys based on macro-invertebrate taxa being developed for HKH region in particular and for India in general will be a valuable tool for assessing the water quality of stream & rivers in minimum time and with least cost in comparison to physico-chemical methods needing much time and costly equipment. [Life Science Journal. 2008; 5(3): 67-72] (ISSN: 1097-8135).