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Updated: Aug 6, 2026

Clean Sampling and Analysis of River and Estuarine Waters for Trace Metal Studies
Published on: July 1, 2016
Physicochemical and trace element assessment of surface and bottom waters in Marchica Lagoon, Morocco: Spatial
Anas Bibot1, Mounia Tahri2, Imad Kissami3
1African Sustainable Agriculture Research Institute (ASARI), Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Laayoune, 70000, Morocco.
Abstract:
The Marchica Lagoon in northeastern Morocco is North Africa's largest coastal lagoon and a crucial socio-ecological system that is increasingly affected by urban wastewater, agricultural runoff, and industrial discharges. This study provides one of the most comprehensive physico-chemical analyses of surface and bottom waters from 25 sampling stations during the early wet season (October 2024). Eighteen parameters, including nine trace elements, were analyzed through in situ and lab methods, multivariate statistics, and GIS interpolation. Water temperature ranged from 21.0 °C to 23.6 °C, salinity from 27.99 to 36.97 PSU, and pH from 5.84 to 8.0, indicating spatial heterogeneity driven by freshwater and marine interactions. COD was highest near wastewater outlets at 296.6 mg/L, with TSS from 4 to 26 ppm, TOC from 1.1 to 4.9 ppm, and hardness from 170 to 780 ppm CaCO₃. Trace element analysis revealed a spatial gradient: S > Sr > B > Li > Al > Si > Fe > Pb > As > Mo > Ba. PCA identified three gradients accounting for 78.31% variance: marine ionic intrusion (PC1: 63%), freshwater organic matter and suspended solids (PC2: 9.8%), and seasonal-biological influences (PC3: 7.8%). GIS interpolation and cluster analysis pinpointed pollution hotspots near the Selouane Wadi outflow and WWTP outlets, supporting scientific water quality assessment and environmental management.
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