Water quality index assessment methods for surface water: A case study of the Citarum River in Indonesia

Water quality index (WQI) can express overall water quality status in a single term. As such, the application of daily WQI assessment should help the general public be more aware of the condition of the surface water around them. As the longest and biggest river in the West Java Province, the Citarum River plays an important role in the life of the community and ecosystem around it. Therefore, this research evaluated which WQI assessment method was best suited for determining the Citarum River's water quality. We utilized West Java Province monitoring data collected from four monitoring stations along the Upstream Citarum. The WQI was calculated using the National Sanitation Foundation WQI (NSF WQI), Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment WQI (CCME WQI), and Oregon Water Quality Index (OWQI) assessment methods. Nine years of monitoring data were grouped and analyzed according to wet vs. dry months, wet vs. dry years, monitoring station, and year. Using the NSF WQI assessment method, the Citarum River obtained a ‘Fair’ and ‘Bad’ water quality grade with WQI ranging between 38.212 and 60.903 during dry months, 49.089 and 62.348 during wet months, 42.935 and 65.696 during dry years, and 39.002 and 58.898 during wet years. The data ranged from 41.458 and 61.206 from each monitoring station, and between 35.920 and 58.713 for the data from each monitoring year. The CCME WQI assessment method showed that the Citarum River had ‘Fair’, ‘Marginal’, and ‘Bad’ water quality with WQI ranging between 12.683 and 31.503 during dry months, 21.231 and 33.127 during wet months, 12.683 and 31.503 during dry years, 12.134 and 28.748 during wet years, 13.621 and 30.569 for the data from each monitoring station, and 13.219 and 68.808 for the data from each monitoring year. The OWQI assessment method gave the Citarum River a ‘Very Bad’ water quality rating with WQI ranging between 11.528 and 18.827 during dry months, 13.898 and 24.563 during wet months, 11.528 and 25.782 during dry years, 11.528 and 15.997 during wet years, 11.528 and 18.842 for each monitoring station, and 11.523 and 16.528 for the data from each monitoring year. Based on these results and the collated advantages and disadvantages of each method, the NSF WQI assessment method was deemed to be the best for determining the Citarum River's water quality.