PJB-2023-509
Morphological, physiological and biochemical responses of sugarcane and soil properties under wastewater irrigation.
Lubna Taj
Abstract
Pakistan faces water scarcity due to population growth and freshwater demand, resulting in usage of untreated or partially treated wastewater for irrigation. Waste generation on mass scale and poor irrigation management leads to wastage of water resources. Farmers in semi- urban regions utilize this wastewater for their irrigation needs because it is readily available and affordable, to grow crops. A study was conducted in Chakera, Faisalabad, a peri-urban agricultural area near a water channel. Samples were collected four times a year for two consecutive years (2016-2017). Aim of the current investigation was to monitor changes in physico-chemical properties of irrigation water (pH, EC, TSS, TDS, COD, PO4, TOC, DOC, heavy metals), evaluate its effects on soil properties (moisture content, bulk density, CEC, DOC, TOC, OM, soil N) and physiological responses of sugarcane plant (POD, SOD, FAA, CAT, TSP, ASA, MDA). All the collected data had been subjected to multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) for assessing the impact of seasonal variation under the influence of irrigation water on plant physiology. Thus, the results of the study showed that plants irrigated with wastewater showed increased antioxidant activity under wastewater stress. Soil properties and plant mineral content differed significantly between wastewater-irrigated and freshwater-irrigated areas. Wastewater samples had higher levels of pH, TOC, TSS, TDS, TN, NH3, PO4, heavy metals (As, Cd, Cu, Cr, Ni). So, it is concluded that wastewater irrigation can affect the potential output of agriculture sector besides altering the physico- chemical properties of the subjected soil.
To Cite this article:
Download
