STREAMFLOW AND WATER QUALITY REGRESSION MODELING OF IMO RIVER SYSTEM: A CASE STUDY

Abstract

The upper reaches of Imo-river system between Nekede and Obigbo hydrological stations (a stretch of 24km) have been studied for the purpose of water quality and streamflow modeling. Model's applications on water supply to Nekede and Obigbo communities were equally explored with the development of mass curves. Possible sources of contamination of Imo-river system within Nekede and Obigbo hydrological stations watershed were traced. Consistency tests, trend analyses and mathematical modeling of water quality constituents and riverflow characteristics at upstream Nekede station and downstream Obigbo station show: consistent time-trends in degree of contamination; linear and non-linear relationships for water quality models against total dissolved solids (TDS), total suspended sediment (TSS), chloride, pH and sulphate; and non-linear relationship for streamflow and water quality transport models. Application of Microsoft Excel software on multiple regressions to the data yielded values of models' coefficients and those of correlation coefficients ranging from 0.9296 to 0.9999. Models' verifications added value to their validity for use in predictions.


JMDMES Vol.2(1) 2003: 55-69