Irrigation Water – Quality and Standards

Risikesh Thakur
Assistant Professor (Soil Science), College of Agriculture, Balaghat
Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur – (M.P.)

All irrigation water contains some salt, but quantities and kinds vary greatly. Since the
salt and sodic status of a soil can be greatly affected by salts in irrigation water. Agricultural
crops receive moisture for their growth and development mostly from two sources : (i) rain
water and (ii) irrigation water. Various criteria for the evaluation of irrigation water with
permissible limits for crop growth are being discussed below :-
1. Salinity hazard or total soluble salt concentration or EC :- The concentration of
soluble salts in irrigation water can be classified in terms of electrical conductivity (EC)
and expressed as dSm-1.
Water class Salt EC (dSm-1) Remarks
concentration
(g L-1)
Low salinity (C1) < 0.16 0.0 – 0.25 Can be used safely
Medium salinity (C2) 0.16 – 0.50 0.25 – 0.75 Can be used with moderately
leaching
High salinity (C3) 0.50 – 1.50 0.75 – 2.25 Can be used for irrigation purposes
with some management practices
Very high salinity (C4) 1.50 – 3.00 2.25 – 5.00 Cannot be used for irrigation
purposes

2. Salt Index : The salt index is used to determine the sustainability of irrigation water
containing salts in excess of sodium chloride. It is also used for predicting sodium
hazards. It is the relationship between Na+, Ca2+ and CaCO3 present in irrigation water.
All salt concentrations are expressed in ppm.
Salt Index = (Total Na – 24.5) – [(Total Ca – Ca in CaCO3) x 4.85]
The value of salt index is negatively for good quality waters and positive value for
water unsuitable for irrigation.
3. Sodium hazard (SAR) :- High concentration of Na+ are undesirable in water because
Na+ adsorbs onto the soil cations exchange sites, causing soil aggregates to break down
(de-flocculation), sealing the pores of the soil, and making it impossible to water flow.
The tendency for sodium to increase its proportion on the cation exchange site at the
expense of other types of cations is estimated by the ratio of Na + content to the content of
Ca + Mg in the irrigation water. This is called as Sodium Adsorption Ratio (SAR).
 SAR – It is the ratio of the concentration of Na+ to the concentration of Ca + Mg and all
these concentrations are expressed in me/litre.
[Na+]
SAR =
[Ca2+] + [Na+] / 2

Water class SAR value Remarks

S1 – Low Na+ < 10 Any type of crops grown and water used
S2 – Medium Na+ 10 – 18 Drainage water used for sandy soil
S3 – High Na+ 18 – 26 Sensitive crops are not take
+
S4 – Very high Na > 26 This water is not used for crops.

4. Bicarbonate hazard (RSC) :- The HCO3- anion is an important in irrigation water. The
residual sodium carbonate (RSC) is used to evaluate the quantity of irrigation water.
RSC (me L-1) = (CO32- +HCO3 -) – (Ca2+ + Mg2+)
Water class RSC value Remarks
Low RSC < 1.25 Can be used safely
Medium RSC 1.25 – 2.50 Can be used with certain management
High RSC > 2.50 Unsuitable for irrigation purposes

5. Boron Concentration :- It is evident that boron is essential for the normal growth of the
plant, but the amount of required is very small. The occurrences of boron in toxic
concentration in certain irrigation water it necessary to consider this element in assessing
the water quality. The permissible limits of boron in irrigation water is given below :
Water class Boron concentration (ppm) Remarks
Sensitive Semi tolerance Tolerance
crops crops crops
Very Low < 0.33 < 0.67 < 1.00 Can be used safely
Low 0.33 – 0.67 0.67 – 1.33 1.00 – 2.00 Can be used with
management
Medium 0.67 – 1.00 1.33 – 2.00 2.00 – 3.00 Unsuitable for
High 1.00 – 1.25 2.00 – 2.50 3.00 – 3.75 irrigation purposes
Very High > 1.25 > 2.50 > 3.75
Boron sensitive crops – Apple, Grape, Cherry, Peach, Orange, Lemon
Boron semi tolerant crops – Sunflower, Potato, Cotton, Tomato, Radish, Field pea,
Barley, Wheat, Corn, Rice, Oat, Sweet potato
Boron tolerant crops – Date palm, Sugar beet, Garden beet, Alfalfa, Onion, Turnip,
Cabbage, Lettuce, Carrot, Cauliflower
6. Chloride Concentration :- The occurrence of chloride ions in irrigation water increases
with increase in electrical conductivity (EC) and sodium ions. Therefore, these ions are
most dominant in very high salinity water. Unlike sodium ions, the chloride ions neither
affect on the physical properties of the soil, nor are adsorbed on the soil. Therefore, it has
generally not been included in modern classification system. However, it is used as a
factor in some regional water classification.

Cl-
-1
Chloride concentration (me L ) =
CO32- + HCO3- + SO42- + Cl- + NO3-

Chloride concentration (me L-1) Water quality

4 Excellent Water
4–7 Moderately good water
7 – 12 Slightly usable
12 – 20 Not suitable for irrigation purposes
> 20

7. Soluble Sodium Percentage (SSP) : Among the soluble constituents of irrigation water,
sodium is considered most hazardous. Excess of sodium ions characterizes the water as
saline or alkaline depending upon its occurrence in association with chloride/ sulphate or
carbonate/ bicarbonate ions. For some time in the past, the quality of irrigation water
used to be evaluated with respect to sodium based on soluble sodium percentage (SSP)
calculated as below.

Soluble Sodium (Na) Concentration

SSP (%) = X 100
Total Cation (Ca + Mg + Na) Concentration

It has been useful in characterizing water, since a high value indicates soft water
and low value hard water. When water with excess of sodium (SSP=66) is used for
irrigation, part of it is adsorbed on the soil. Both, soils and plants are adversely affected
by high sodium irrigation water. Sodium soils are relatively impermeable to air and
water. They are hard when dry, difficult to till and plastic and sticky when wet. These
adverse physical conditions prevent germination and are generally unfavourable for plant
growth. Even though, sodium is not as essential as other nutrients, it is taken up freely by
many plants and it may be specifically toxic to plants.
8. Magnesium Hazard : It is believed that one of the important qualitative criteria in
judging the irrigation water is its Mg content in relation to total divalent cations, since
high Mg adsorption by soils affects their physical properties. A harmful effect on soils
appears when Ca : Mg ratio decline below 50. Magnesium hazard in irrigation water is
expected having Mg : Ca ratio more than one.

Mg2+
Mg- Adsorption Ratio =
Ca2+ + Mg2+
9. Nitrate Concentration (me L-1) : Very frequently ground water contain high amount of
nitrate. When such type of irrigation water is applied on soils continuously, various
physical properties of soils are affected, which causes poor growth of the plants.

Water class Nitrate Value Remarks

(me L-1)
Low Nitrate 5.0 Good water No problem
Medium Nitrate 5.0 – 30.0 Moderately good water
High Nitrate > 30.0 Unsuitable for irrigation purposes

10. Lithium : Lithium is a trace element may be found in most of saline ground water and
irrigated soils. It has been found that small concentrations (0.05-0.1 ppm) of lithium in
irrigation water produce toxic effects on growth of citrus. It has also been reported that
saline soils of varying degrees found in India contain lithium upto 2.5 ppm. Fortunately,
the germination of majority of crops i.e. rice, wheat, barley etc. are not affected with this
level of lithium content in soils.
11. Fluoride : fluorides are only sparingly soluble and are in only small amounts. The
concentration of fluoride ranges from traces to more than 10 mg L-1 in natural water, and
surface water do not exceed 0.3 mg L -1 unless they are polluted. Irrigation with fluoride
saline water (upto 25 mg L-1) has not been found to affect yield of wheat. Therefore, it is
doubtful if fluoride requires any monitoring in India. At present, the average
concentration of fluoride has not been observed to be very high (10 mg L -1).
 Guidelines for irrigation water quality established by the World Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO) :-

Water Constituent Intensity of problem*

No problem Moderate Severe
Salinity (dSm-1) < 0.75 0.75 – 3.0 > 3.0
Permeability (rate of infiltration affected) > 0.5 0.5 – 0.2 < 0.2
Salinity (dSm-1)
Adjusted SAR : Soils are
Dominantly montmorillonite < 6.0 6.0 – 9.0 > 9.0
Dominantly illite – vermiculite < 8.0 8.0 – 16.0 > 16.0
Dominantly kaolinite – sesquioxide < 16.0 16.0 – 24 > 24.0
Specific ion toxicity
Sodium (as adjusted SAR) < 3.0 3.0 – 9.0 > 9.0
Chloride (meq L-1) < 4.0 4.0 – 10.0 > 10.0
Boron (meq L-1) < 0.75 0.75 – 2.0 > 2.0
Miscellaneous
NO3- ̶ N or NH4+ ̶ N (meq L-1) < 5.0 5.0 – 30.0 > 30.0
HCO3- (meq L-1) as damaged by < 1.5 1.5 – 8.5 > 8.5
overhead sprinkler
pH 6.5 -8.4 - 0.0 – 5.0, 9.5+
* Based on the assumptions that the soils are sandy loam to clay loams, have good drainage are in arid to
semi arid climates, irrigation is sprinkler or surface, root depths are normal for deep soils, and the
guidelines are only approximate.

Crop groups based on response to soil salinity :-

Sensitive Crops Resistant Crops

Highly sensitive Medium sensitive Medium tolerant Highly tolerant
Lentil Radish Spinach Barley
Mash Cow pea Sugarcane Cotton
Chickpea Broad bean Indian mustard Sugar beet
Beans Vetch Rice (transplanted) Turnip
Peas Cabbage Wheat Tobacco
Carrot Cauliflower Pearl millet Safflower
Onion Cucumber Oats Rapeseed
Lemon Gourds Alfalfa Karnal grass
Orange Tomato Blue panic grass Date palm
Grape Sweet potato Para grass Ber
Peach Sorghum Rhodes grass Mesquite
Plum Minor millets Sudan grass Casuarina
Pear Maize Guava Tamarix
Apple Clover, berseem Pomegranate Salvadora
 Upper permissible concentrations of trace elements in irrigation water :-

Element Recommended Remarks

Maximum
Concentration
(mg/L)
Aluminium (Al) 5.0 Can cause non-productivity in acid soils (pH <
5.5), but more alkaline soils at pH > 7.0 will
precipitate the ion and eliminate any toxicity.
Arsenic (As) 0.10 Toxicity to plants varies widely, ranging from 12
mg/l for Sudan grass to < 0.05 mg/l for rice.
Beryllium (Be) 0.10 Toxicity to plants varies widely, ranging from 5
mg/l for kale to 0.5 mg/l for bush beans.
Copper (Cu) 0.20 Toxic to a number of plants at 0.1 to 1.0 mg/l in
nutrient solutions.
Fluoride (F) 1.03 Inactivated by neutral and alkaline soils.
Iron (Fe) 5.0 Can be contributed to soil acidification and loss of
availability of phosphorus and molybdenum.
Lithium (Li) 2.5 Tolerated by most crops up to 5 mg/l; mobile in
soil. Acts similarly to boron.
Manganese (Mn) 0.20 Toxic to a number of crops but usually only in
acid soils.
Molybdenum (Mo) 0.01 Can be toxic to livestock if forage is grown in
soils with high concentrations of available Mo.
Nickel (Ni) 0.20 Toxic to a number of plants at 0.5 mg/l to 1.0
mg/l; reduced toxicity at neutral or alkaline pH.
Lead (Pb) 5.0 Can inhibit plant cell growth at very high
concentrations.
Zinc (Zn) 2.0 Toxic to many plants at widely varying
concentrations; reduced toxicity at pH > 6.0 and in
fine textured or organic soils.
Cadmium (Cd) 0.01 Toxic to beans, beets and turnips at concentrations
as low as 0.1 mg/l in nutrient solutions.
Conservative limits recommended it may be
harmful to humans.

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