Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782
DOI 10.1007/s12665-014-3803-7
THEMATIC ISSUE
Evaluation of groundwater quality in northern Saudi Arabia
using multivariate analysis and stochastic statistics
Abeer Sh. Salman • Faisal K. Zaidi •
M. T. Hussein
Received: 3 September 2013 / Accepted: 14 October 2014 / Published online: 25 October 2014
Ó Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2014
Abstract Groundwater resources available in the Paleozoic
sedimentary formations form the most prolific source of
water supply in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In the absence
of surface water supplies the available groundwater reserves
in these aquifers have been used extensively to fulfill the
agricultural and domestic water demands. The main purpose
of this paper was to evaluate the groundwater quality in the
Northern Western part of Saudi Arabia using the classical
water facies diagram (Piper and Durov plot). The more
advanced methods of principal component analysis (PCA) for
determining the factors controlling the groundwater chemis-
try and stochastic geostatistics to understand the spatial dis-
tribution of different major elements in the groundwater of
the study area were employed. 40 groundwater samples from
bore wells tapping the Saq aquifer were collected and ana-
lyzed for the major ion chemistry and nitrates. Groundwater
occurs within detrital sandstones of Phanerozoic era in Saq
Formations. Piper plot revealed that most of the water sam-
ples belonged to the mixed class (Ca–Mg–Cl–SO4 type) and
few samples falling within the Ca–Mg–HCO3 type, Na–Cl
type, and Ca–Mg–SO4 type of groundwater facies. Durov
plot pointed towards simple dissolution, silicate weathering,
This article is a part of a Topical Collection, ‘‘Environmental Geology
in Saudi Arabia’’; edited by Zhou Wanfang and Olaf Kolditz.
A. Sh. Salman (&)
Environmental Geostatistic and GIS, Geographic Department,
King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
e-mail: abalsalman@ksu.edu.sa
F. K. Zaidi  M. T. Hussein
SGSRC, Department of Geology and Geophysics, King Saud
University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
e-mail: fzaidi@ksu.edu.sa
M. T. Hussein
e-mail: mhussein@ksu.edu.sa
ion exchange, and reverse ion exchange as the main processes
governing the chemistry of the area. PCA resulted in the
extraction of two PC accounting for 78.11 % of the data
variability. The extracted PCs pointed towards geogenic
factors governing the groundwater quality. Stochastic geo-
statistics involved prediction maps of ordinary kriging and
indicator kriging which provided detailed indications of
spatial distribution of the chemical elements.
Keywords Northwestern Saudi Arabia  Saq Formation 
Principal component analysis  Ordinary kriging  Indicator
kriging
Introduction
Groundwater is the most important source of water supply
in Saudi Arabia mainly due to the scarcity of surface water
and scarce, irregular, and unpredictable rainfall (Alkolibi
2002). With over 80 % of the total water demand being
fulfilled from the non-renewable groundwater resources,
Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the world without
lakes and rivers (Llamas and Custudio 2003).
The geological formation through which the water flows
is the most important factor which controls the ground-
water chemistry mainly due to the process of rock–water
interaction (Belkhiri et al. 2012; Mehmandosti and Adabi
2013). However, evaporation and dilution due to precipi-
tation are also other important geological factors which can
affect the groundwater chemistry (Fisher and Mullican
1997; Jankowski and Acworth 1997; Elango and Kannan
2007). In the past few decades extensive agricultural
activities and urbanization/industrialization have also
resulted in altering the ambient groundwater quality (Li
et al. 2010; Vijay et al. 2011; Fujita et al. 2013).
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The purpose of the present study was to assess the
groundwater quality in the Tabuk-Madina area of North-
western Saudi Arabia with special emphasis on the factors
which govern the major ion chemistry of the area. Hyd-
rochemical facies classification using Piper and Durov
plots were employed in the study. Geostatistical analyses
such as principal component analysis (PCA) for deter-
mining the factors controlling the groundwater quality and
kriging techniques for the spatial distribution of the various
ions were also used.
The study area
Geographic location and climate
The study area lies in Tabuk-Madina region in northern
Saudi Arabia, about 900 km northwest of Al-Riyadh
between the coordinates 29.5°–26.00°N and 35.00°–
40.00°E (Fig. 1). The study area comprises mostly of
barren land except at three sites: Tabuk, Tayma, and Al-
Ula. The spatial extent of agricultural land in Tabuk area
Fig. 1 Location of the study area
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Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782
was approximately 10 % from 1988 to 2008 (Al-Harbi
2010). The area lies within a typical hyper arid zone where
temperatures exceeding 40 °C in summer (June–August)
and reaching as low as 3 °C during winter (January–Feb-
ruary). The average annual rainfall does not exceed
100 mm and annual evaporation rates exceed 2,000 mm.
Geological and hydrogeological settings
The study area is underlain by Proterozoic metamorphosed
igneous basement rocks unconformably overlain by Phan-
erozoic sedimentary succession of the Arabian Shelf,
covered with Tertiary–Quaternary volcanic rocks and
Holocene-Recent sedimentary deposits. The geology of the
study area is shown in Figs. 2 and 3. According to the
geological maps of the Saudi Directorate of Mineral
Resources, these units are, from oldest to youngest,
1. The Tayma Group: This group includes Cambrian
Ordovician sedimentary detrital sedimentary forma-
tions of Yatib, Saq and Qasim Formations.
Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782 7771

Fig. 2 Geological map of study area (modified after Sharland et al. 2004)

2. The Tabuk Group: This includes Late Ordovician– Materials and methods
Silurian glacial and glacio-marine deposits of Sarah
Formation. Sampling and laboratorial analysis
3. The Qalibah Group: This group includes Silurian
formations of Uqlah, Qusaiba and Sharawra. Forty water samples were collected from bore wells in the
4. The Huj Group: It includes Devonian rocks of Tawil, Madinah-Tabuk region. The source of water for all these
Jauf and Jubah formations. bore wells was the Saq Formation, which is one of the
major aquifers of Saudi Arabia. A global positioning sys-
The Cenozoic deposits that overlie the Paleozoic rocks
tem (GPS) was used for location and elevation readings.
include volcanic rocks, Red sandstone and conglomerate,
This was supported with topographic sheets made available
and Pleistocene to Holocene lacustrine, colluvial, eolian,
from the Saudi Geological Survey. In-situ measurements
depression and fluvial deposits.
include pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and temperature.
Though the Saq Formation is not exposed in the study
The groundwater samples were collected in polyethylene
area, it forms the most prolific aquifer in the region. All the
bottles after pumping the wells for about 30 min. The
collected water samples were from wells which tap the Saq
pumping ensured that collected water samples did not
aquifer. It is composed of medium- to coarse-grained quartz
come from the water in the storage within the wells. The
sandstone and contains significant amount of fossil water,
plastic bottles were first rinsed with the water samples to be
estimated to be about 280,000 Mm3, which is of age
collected to reduce the probability of contamination. The
22,000–28,000 years (Ahmadi 2008). The depth of the
samples were analyzed in the laboratory for Na, K, Ca2?,
aquifer ranges from 670 to 900 m, as shown in Fig. 3. The
Mg2?, HCO3-, Cl-, SO4-, NO3-, and total dissolved
deep aquifer is under confined conditions with the trans-
solids (TDS). The sample preservation and the analytical
missivity values ranging from 9 9 10-3 to 3.8 9 10-2 m2/s
techniques were in accordance with standard methods used
and storativity in the order of 1.2 9 10-3 (Saudi Water Atlas
by the American Public Health Association (APHA 1995).
1984). The regional groundwater flow is towards the north-
Standard methods were used for the determination of the
east and east directions (Fig. 4). The water quality of the Saq
chemical characteristics of the water samples as shown in
Formation is generally good except for a few areas where the
Table 1.
quality is fair or rarely poor (Sharaf and Hussein 1996).

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Fig. 3 Lithostratigraphy of the study area (Sharland et al. 2004)
Principal component analysis
The statistical analysis used in the present study comprises
of PCA. PCA is a variation reduction technique in which a
number of observed/measures parameters can be trans-
formed into a small number of artificial variables known as
principal components (PC). PCA has been used by many
workers to study the influence of natural and anthropogenic
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Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782
activities on the groundwater quality (Güler et al. 2012; Qin
et al. 2013; Zumlot et al. 2013). The number of extracted PC
is equal to the number of variables included in the analysis;
however, normally PCs having Eigen values [1 are taken
into consideration as they account for the maximum vari-
ance in the observed parameter (Jiang et al. 2009; Kolsi
et al. 2013). Varimax rotation is applied to all the extracted
principal components to reduce the contribution of the
Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782 7773

Fig. 4 Peizometeric level of the groundwater in the study area

Table 1 Analytical methods used for measuring parameters of the area. The theory of regionalized variables was described
water samples by Matheron (1962), Journal and Huijbregts (1978) and
Parameter Analytical method David (1977). The variables were subjected to three
-
stages of analysis. The first step determined the type of
EC lS/cm, pH value, temperature °C KarlKob the distribution analysis using Moran I tests, histogram
Total hardness EDTA titrimetric views, and Voronoi maps. The second stage, fits the best
TDS evaporation representative semi-variogram model depending in the
Ca2? Mg2? Mohr method Eq. (1).
Na?, K? Flame emission photometric P
HCO3- Neutralization method  ½zðxÞ  zðx þ hÞ2
c ðhÞ ¼ ; ð1Þ
NO Chmiluminescence 2N
3
where, c*(h) is the semi-variance, and the star indicates an
variables which are not significant (Closs and Nichol 1975). experimental variogram computed from the data, z(x) is the
Each variable considered for PCA has a weight factor value of initial potential at site x, z(x ? h) is the value of
associated with it. This weight factor, also referred to as PC potential at site (h) distance from (x), and N is the number
score, is the correlation between the original variable and a of sample pairs.
factor. A PC score close to ±1 indicates a strong correlation In the ideal case, when the distance become very large,
between the given variable and the factor. The statistical the sample values will become independent of one another;
software used for PCA was the SPSSÒ 17. the semi variogram value will then become more or less
constant, which is called ideal shape as shown in Fig. 5.
Spatial analysis Three major implementation parameters that have a
significant meaning can be obtained in the semivariogram,
Geostatistical analyses were performed to determine the as shown in Fig. 5. Nugget (C0) is the intercept of the
spatial extent of groundwater contamination in the study semivariogram, which represents unresolved discontinuity

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γ(h)
Sill (C)
Nugget (Co)
Range (Ao)
Distance (h)
Raw data Fied variogram
Fig. 5 Idealized semi-variogram with the component parameters
or measurement error. Pitard (1994) stated that the nugget
is the result of at least seven types of variability, mainly
random and heterogeneity variability, poor recovery,
human errors, and analytical procedure. Sill (C) is the value
of the semi-variance as the lag (h) goes to infinity; it is
equal to the total variance of the data set. Range of influ-
ence (A0) is the distance that controls the degree of cor-
relation between data points where the flat region begins.
Within this range, locations are spatially auto correlated to
each other and after this separation distance, the points in
the modeled domain are no longer spatially correlated.
There are several possible mathematical functions used to
model semivariograms, but only a few are commonly used
(Scott 2000). Models are categorized according to their
behavior at the origin and presence of a sill. Table 2 sum-
marizes the most commonly used single variable models.
The final stage is kriging, which provides a means of
interpolating values of points not physically sampled but
using knowledge about the spatial relationships of the data
set. According to Clark (1979), kriging produces the best
linear unbiased estimation. Warrick et al. (1986) performed
a detailed comparison of kriging and other commonly used
interpolators and found that kriged estimates (Eqs. 2, 3)
met objective ‘‘goodness-of-fit’’ criteria just as well as the
others.
X normality distribution. Normality testing indicated that
Z  ðX0 Þ ¼ ki cðxi Þ; ð2Þ
X
ki ¼ 1 ð3Þ
where Z*(X0) is the estimated value of Z at X0, and ki is the
weight that give the best possible estimation from the
surrounding points. Kriging includes many types such as
ordinary, simple, universal, probability and indicator kri-
ging. The differences between them in the assumptions are
whether the mean and error are known and whether they
are constant or not (Journel 1983). Ordinary kriging and
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Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782
Table 2 Single semivariogram models
Models with a sill and linear behavior at the origin
 
Spherical model 3h h3
cðhÞ ¼ C0 þ C  3 when ha
2a 2a
cðhÞ ¼ C when ha
  
Exponential cðhÞ ¼ C0 þ C1 1  exp  3h
a
model
Models with a sill and parabolic behavior at the origin
h  i
Gaussian model cðhÞ ¼ C þ C 1  exp  9h2
0 1 a2
Models without a sill
Power model cðhÞ ¼ C0 þ phx
Linear model cðhÞ ¼ ph
Logarithmic cðhÞ ¼ p logðhÞ
model
Where C is the sill of the semivariogram, a is the range, C0 is the
nugget effect and the sill value (C0 ? C1), p is the slope of the semi-
variogram line
probability kriging were used in the study area to produce
maps of chemical element concentrations. Ordinary kriging
was proposed by Matheron (1962) and it assumes a con-
stant unknown mean, where the unsampled point will be
predicted from variogram analyses using surrounding
points. Probability kriging was introduced by Sullivan
(1984) and a case study was given in Verly and Sullivan
(1985) in which contamination maps were generated
through the use of threshold levels. Recently, geostatistics
was used to quantify the degree of contamination in soil
and groundwater (Salman et al. 2014).
Result and discussion
Groundwater chemistry
The statistical analyses of the groundwater chemical analysis
were carried out and are shown in the Table 3. The average
value of all the elements was below World Health Organi-
zation (WHO) limit; however, the maximum values of chlo-
ride and nitrate in some samples exceed the standard limit.
Skewness value of the histogram was used to check the
elements were log-normally distributed and, therefore, to
achieve a normal distribution; the data were initially
transformed into logarithmic manner except NO3.
The correlation matrix is complied in Table 4. The
correlation analysis between TDS, Ca2?, Na?, Cl- and
SO42- shows strong positive relationship, while the rela-
tionship is weak between TDS, K? and NO3.
The major water facies and the ionic relationship
between the different elements in the study area was
assessed using Piper diagram and extended Durov plot.
Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782 7775

Table 3 Statistical analysis of groundwater chemical analysis

TDS Ca K Mg Na Cl SO4 HCO3 NO3

Mean (mg/l) 475 55 5 15 66 101 19.8 142 17

Minimum (mg/l) 190 17 0.9 5 17.4 23 19.8 71 0
Maximum (mg/l) 909 132 17 37 165 256 173 354 65.5
Distribution Log Log Log Log Log Log Log Log Normal
Skewness -0.33 -0.4 -0.12 -0.04 -0.19 -0.4 -0.38 0.59 1.9
Kurtosis 2.6 3.9 3 2.1 2.6 2.7 3.1 3.2 8.6
Standard deviation 0.37 0.38 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.45 0.37 11.7
Model Spherical Gaussian Gaussian Gaussian Gaussian Stable Stable Gaussian Spherical
Major R 1.6 0.48 0.9 1.2 0.86 2.1 1.6 0.37 0.4
Minor R 0.5 0.16 0.5 0.5 0.3 0.7 0.55 0.12 0.27
Partial sill 0.14 0.14 0.47 0.3 0.24 0.45 0.24 0.12 0.98
Nugget 0.02 0.01 0.02 0.05 0.04 0.01 0.08 0.003 0
Direction 108 93 6 87 93 97 100 103 50
GCS 1,000 200 – 150 200 250 400 – 45
WHO 1,000 – – – 200 250 400 – 50
GCS Gulf countries standard, R range

Table 4 Correlation matrix TDS pH Ca K Mg Na Cl SO4 HCO3 NO3

between chemical elements
TDS 1.00
pH -0.18 1.00
Ca 0.72 -0.15 1.00
K 0.48 -0.33 0.12 1.00
Mg 0.54 -0.52 0.29 0.72 1.00
Na 0.91 0.02 0.50 0.33 0.30 1.00
Cl 0.90 -0.11 0.87 0.20 0.35 0.79 1.00
SO4 0.81 0.04 0.81 0.23 0.27 0.74 0.86 1.00
HCO3 0.55 -0.34 -0.06 0.61 0.63 0.53 0.18 0.03 1.00
NO3 0.19 0.31 0.53 0.08 -0.11 0.08 0.27 0.43 -0.37 1.00

Piper diagram has been extensively used in water chemistry
studies to find out the groundwater species. The Piper plot
for the study area is given in Fig. 6. As seen from the plot
the cationic triangle is dominated by the Ca dominant zone,
no dominant zone, and Na ? K dominant zone. Most of the
samples fall within the no dominant zone. On the anionic
triangle the samples are represented by CO ? HCO3
dominant zone, no dominant zone, and Cl dominant zone.
The diamond of the piper is represented by five types of
groundwater facies with majority of the water samples
falling within the Ca–Mg–Cl–SO4 type or mixed type of
groundwater. One sample falls within the Ca–Mg–SO4 type
of facies and is represented by permanent groundwater
hardness due to the formation of non-carbonate salts. Four
samples fall with the Na–Cl type of groundwater facies.
Five samples fall within the Ca–Mg–HCO3 type and one
sample falls within the Na–HCO3–Cl type. In general the
groundwater in the area shows a progressive change from
fresh recharge (Ca–Mg–HCO3) type to mixed type (Ca–
Mg–Cl–SO4) to evaporation dominant type (Na–Cl). Saline
water intrusion resulting in Na–Cl type of water can be
ruled out as the study area is far from the coast.
The processes responsible for the chemical evolution of
groundwater in a given hydrological setup are better
explained by the expanded Durov diagram (Lloyd and
Heathcote 1985). The DurovPwin software (Al-Bassam
and Khalil 2012) was used for preparing the Durov plot
(Fig. 7). In accordance with the Piper plot most of the
samples fell within field 5 which is a result of the mixing of
two or more different types of groundwater facies. Three
groundwater samples fell within field 2 represented by Mg–
Ca–HCO3 type of groundwater indicating the presence of
fresh groundwater in dolomitic aquifers (mainly from the
rock water interaction in the Jauf Formation). One sample
falls within field 3 which represents the Na–HCO3 type of
groundwater and can be a result of ion-exchange or silicate
weathering processes. Three samples fall within field 4
represented by the dominance of Ca–SO4. This is the result

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Fig. 6 Piper plot
of simple dissolution of gypsum bearing aquifer material in
the area. Two samples fall within field 6. This type of
groundwater is rare and is represented by Na–SO4 type of
groundwater which can be found in an evaporation domi-
nant environment. Four samples fall within field 8 and are
represented by Mg–(Na)–(Ca)–Cl type of groundwater and
show the possible influence of reverse ion exchange. In
reverse ion exchange, the Ca and Mg present in the clayey
formations are released in exchange for Na present in the
groundwater. Two samples fall within field 9 represented
by Na–Cl type of groundwater normally represented by
halite dissolution in an evaporation dominant environment.
Based on the Piper and Durov plot it can be clearly
stated that simple dissolution (carbonate, halite, and gyp-
sum), silicate weathering, ion exchange, and reverse ion
exchange are the major natural processes which govern the
water chemistry in the study area.
Principal component analysis
Principal component analysis was carried out for nine
parameters which included TDS, Na, Ca, Mg, K, Cl, SO4,
HCO3 and NO3. PCs having Eigen values \1 were
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Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782
eliminated and were subjected to varimax rotation to
reduce the contribution of variables with minor signifi-
cance. This resulted in the extraction of two principal
components which accounted for 78 % of the data
variability.
PC1 accounts for 53 % of the data variability and shows
significant factor loadings of TDS, Ca, Na, Cl, NO3 and
SO4. The weights for these parameters are 0.808, 0.925,
0.704, 0.922, 0.577 and 0.938, respectively, as shown in the
Table 5. Ca, Na, Cl, NO3 and SO4 contribute to more than
50 % of the total TDS and this explains why TDS has a
significant contribution for PC1. The geogenic factors
related to dissolution (gypsum/halite) and ion exchange are
highlighted in PC1; however, the significant factor loading
of NO3 in PC1 can be attributed to the anthropogenic
activities mostly related to agricultural activities in the
study area.
PC2 represents 25 % of the total variability and is
highlighted by significant factor loadings ([0.5) of Mg, K
and HCO3. The weights for these parameters are 0.803,
0.769 and 0.933, respectively. They are represented by
geogenic processes mostly related to silicate and carbonate
weathering.
Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782 7777

Fig. 7 Durov plot

Table 5 Principal component Variable Rotated component variables were anisotropically distributed in space indi-
analysis matrix cating the existence of more than one factor affecting and
controlling groundwater chemistry (Al-Kuisi et al. 2009).
Component
The final ordinary kriging maps for pH, TDS, major
1 2 cations (Ca2?, Mg2?, Na?, K?), and major anions (NO3-,
TDS 0.808 0.567 Cl-, SO42-, HCO3) were calculated, as shown in Fig. 9.
Ca 0.925 -0.013 Generally, the major cations and anions increased in the
Mg 0.194 0.803 irrigation area in Al-Ula area and well 26.
Na 0.704 0.495
The TDS ranges between 190.3 and 909 mg/l. The
K 0.141 0.769
higher values are concentrated in two areas, Al-Ula and
Significant loadings are shown well 26. The lowest estimated TDS (190 mg/l) is in the
in bold HCO3 -0.031 0.933
barren land such as well 9 and south of Tyma area. In the
Extraction method: principal Cl 0.922 0.237
component analysis. Rotation
urban Tabuk area, the estimated TDS ranged from 493 to
NO3 0.577 -0.405
method: varimax with Kaiser 533 mg/l and showed high values in the surrounding irri-
SO4 0.938 0.115
normalization gated agriculture area. However, the TDS values in the
study area are within the acceptable limits.
The NO3 concentration decreases in the northern side of
Spatial analysis the study area, while the southern side is characterized by
high concentration reaching up to the maximum permissi-
According to the computed semi-variogram clouds analy- ble limit in the eastern side of the Al-Ula area ([45 mg/l).
ses, the concentration of chemical parameters were spa- The main sources of the NO3 in the groundwater are
tially distributed in spherical, Gaussian and Stable manner inorganic fertilizers, human wastes, and sewage sludge.
(Table 3; Fig. 8). The semi-variogram models were chosen The mean value of chloride is 165 mg/l (Table 3) which
according to the least root mean square error (RMSE). All is below the permissible limit (250 mg/l). However, the

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Fig. 8 Semivariogram models for chemical parameters

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 Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782

Fig. 9 Ordinary kriging maps for chemical parameters

7779

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Fig. 10 Probability maps of
TDS and NO3
concentration increases gradually in Tabuk area and well
26 and well 36. High Cl concentrations in Al-Ula area
(202–256 mg/l) may be due to contamination from sewage
and agriculture wastes. Anthropogenic pollution may result
in high concentrations of chloride (Vengosh and Pankratov
1998).
High concentration of sulfates in groundwater can be
due to application of fertilizers (MgSO4, K2SO4) and
cement materials (CaSO4); however, in the present case it
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Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782
is attributed to rock–water interaction (Gypsum dissolu-
tion). It is dramatically increased in wells 3 and 45.
Bicarbonate values are high in the northern side (except
in well 39 and 40). Due to groundwater recharge from
precipitation and irrigation return flows, the carbonate
minerals available along the flow path are dissolved
depending on the availability of dissolved of CO2, as a
result of HCO3 releasing to the groundwater (Lakashmanan
et al. 2003).
Environ Earth Sci (2015) 74:7769–7782
The indicator kriging technique provided more reliable
maps for defining the degree of nitrate contamination and
salinity based on threshold standards of 45 and 600 mg/l,
respectively, as shown in Fig. 10. High salinity is found in
Al-Ula, well 26, and Tabuk area and all of these areas are
agricultural land except well 26, which is in a barren land.
High nitrate contamination probability increases gradually
from Tayma to Al-Ula area.
Intensive agriculture and urban developments have
placed a high demand on groundwater resources and have
resulted in large-scale abstraction of the shallow ground-
water in Tabuk (Moneer et al. 2012) and in north of Ma-
dina Al-Mounawra in such a way that the abstraction has
exceeded the sustainable limits and degraded the environ-
ment. Assessing the groundwater and developing strategies
to protect water are essential requirements.
Conclusions
1. In general the groundwater quality in the study area is
good and suitable for agriculture. Ca–Mg–Cl–SO4
(mixed type) of groundwater facies is the most com-
mon facies in the study area. Ion exchange, simple
dissolution (halite, calcite and gypsum), silicate
weathering, and reverse ion exchange are the main
factors governing the groundwater chemistry.
2. Two Principal Components account for 78 % of the
total data variability and point mainly towards geo-
genic sources as the contributors of the major ions in
the groundwater. However, high factor loading of NO3
in PC1 points towards anthropogenic sources of
groundwater pollution.
3. It is recommended that groundwater protection policies
should be devised to sustain and prevent the deteriora-
tion of the groundwater quality in the region, especially
around agricultural and urban areas in Tabuk and Al-
Ula.
Acknowledgments The authors would like to thank the anonymous
reviewers of for their valuable suggestions for significantly improving
the quality of the manuscript. Thanks are due to the Research Center
for Humanities, Deanship of Scientific Research at King Saud Uni-
versity for supporting and granting this research. The authors owe a
great deal of appreciation to Mr. Omar Lafouza from King Abdulaziz
City for Science and Technology for his support and guidance.
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