Assessment of Physical-Chemical Water Quality Characteristics and Heavy Metals Content of Lower Johor River, Malaysia

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2020, Volume 8 Issue 3, Pages: 961-966

J. Environ. Treat. Tech.

ISSN: 2309-1185

Journal web link: http://www.jett.dormaj.com

Assessment of Physical-Chemical Water Quality

Characteristics and Heavy Metals Content of Lower

Johor River, Malaysia

1, 2

Y.Q. Liang , K.V. Annammala *, P. Martin , E.L. Yong , L.S. Mazilamani , M.Z.M. Najib

Department of Water and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

Centre of Environmental Sustainability & Water Security (IPASA), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

Asian School of the Environment, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Received: 09/03/2020

Accepted: 16/06/2020

Published: 20/09/2020

Abstract

Surface freshwater quality has received more attention in recent years, which is since fresh water is regarded as a limited resource and

many threats can negatively affect the water quality. The expansion of urban pollution in the Johor River in Johor State, Malaysia, has been

induced by different anthropogenic activities being carried out, which bring potential risks to freshwater quality. The aim of this study was

to quantify the physical-chemical properties of water and heavy metal concentrations at 11 sampling sites (S 01-S 11) selected along the

Johor River. Eight water quality parameters were determined, and nine heavy metals were determined using Inductively Coupled Plasma-

Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). Findings revealed that total suspended solid concentration and pH of the water samples satisfied the Class II

outlined in the National Water Quality Standards for Malaysia (NWQSM). Most of the ammonia concentrations satisfied the Class II except

at stations S 01 to S 03. The nutrient concentration (nitrate, nitrite, and phosphate) were found quite low. On the other hand, the range of

certain elements such as Fe (1.75 to 6.90 ppm), Cu (0.06 to 1.34 ppm), and As (0.01 to 0.29 ppm) was found to exceed the Class II standard

at all stations. A strong relationship between TSS, As, and Cu concentrations was found, which may be due to Cu and As carried along the

river by suspended sediments, coming from the anthropogenic sources into the catchment areas. The results indicated that the river water

quality is extremely sensitive to the local land use and practices. Further detailed research into the concentration of the elements in storm

water could be the next research focus.

Keywords: Water Quality, Heavy Metal, National Water Quality Standard in Malaysia, River Water

Introduction¹

Peninsular Malaysia have been classified as slightly polluted and

9 rivers as polluted. Therefore, identification of the pollutants

Rivers ecosystems have received more attention in recent

provenance and providing plans to manage the constantly

polluted rivers are important measures [6].

years due to their high economic value as food sources and their

wide use for recreational purposes, nature tourism, etc. [1,2].

Freshwater is regarded as a limited resource whose retention is

becoming a significant challenge due to the input of pollutant to

its resources [3, 35]. The natural processes such as weathering,

precipitation, soil erosion, etc. and anthropogenic processes such

as agricultural, urban, and industrial activities are recognised as

parameters affecting the water quality [3, 34]. Therefore, river

water quality is recognised as one of the main issues, especially

in developing countries due to the industrialization and economic

growth [4, 1, 5]. Such countries, including Malaysia, where the

rivers water is recognised as the main water resource, are

supporting daily subsistence and multipurpose uses of water

resources for local communities [6, 34, 35]. Rapid development

causes the expansion of developing areas within river basins,

which may increase the pollution loading into rivers [6, 7, 8].

Based on the river analysis in Malaysia, 150 out of 646 rivers in

Water quality degradation is often resulted from non-point

source pollution; thus, it is hard to control [9]. The water quality

in rivers is often influenced by sediment runoff, nutrient inputs,

and other harmful chemical pollutants, which originate from land

use activities around the catchment area [1]. Different kinds of

pollutants enter rivers, which are resulted from different

anthropogenic activities [1, 10]. Based on previous studies, the

ammoniacal and nutrient input indicates untreated municipal

sewage and fertiliser [6, 11]. The higher erosion rate, the higher

total suspended solid (TSS) concentration is found in agriculture

and urban areas [11]. The spatial variation of physiochemical

parameters can be used to determine the pollution status of a river

[

1, 7, 35]. Physicochemical parameters include the physical

parameters (e.g., TSS and temperature) and chemical parameters

e.g., dissolve oxygen (DO), pH, ammoniacal nitrogen (AN),

(

Corresponding author: K.V. Annammala, (a) Department of Water and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, Universiti

Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Malaysia, and (b) Centre of Environmental Sustainability & Water Security (IPASA), Universiti Teknologi

Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Malaysia. Email: kogila@utm.my.

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2020, Volume 8 Issue 3, Pages: 961-966

nitrate, nitrite, and phosphate). Therefore, a reliable water quality

evaluation is important as the scientific proof for the water

resource management to control the pollution and develop better

management and planning [12, 35].

5 stations were at the selected tributaries of the river. There were

different types of land uses along the river. The site description

and the coordinate of the sampling points are summarized in

Table 1.

The anthropogenic activities also cause the entrance of large

amount of heavy metals into water system, which has been

widespread and stated in many previous studies [13]. The heavy

metal pollution, in comparison to other pollutions, is more

alarming due to the non-biodegradable characteristic of heavy

metal with bio-accumulative behaviour in the system [14, 34].

The excessive heavy metal forms through various processes and

pathways, which include natural and anthropogenic sources [15].

Heavy metals are mainly released from anthropogenic sources,

especially industrial activities, and mining [13, 16, 17, 34].

Therefore, the physicochemical parameter and heavy metals

concentrations are measured to evaluate the water quality.

Many previous studies stated that inappropriate land use

induces the deterioration of water quality [9]. Water quality

evaluation is important to have effective management control and

improve the water quality [3,6]. The Johor River is the main river

in Johor State, Malaysia, which is the main freshwater resource in

Johor State and for the neighbouring country, Singapore [18].

Based on previously conducted studies, the water quality index of

the Johor River is ranged from 47 to 52 and fall into Class IV,

which is only suitable for irrigation purposes. There are various

anthropogenic activities, including industrial and sand mining

activities, along the Johor River, and the end of the estuarine is

close to Singapore. Thus, the water quality of the Johor River is

of regional concerning interest to control the water pollution and

to secure the water supply and quality control to be safe for both

countries [19, 40].

The main purpose of this study was to quantify the physical-

chemical water quality characteristics and heavy metals

concentrations at 11 sampling sites (Figure 1) along the Johor

River and to determine the current quality of the river system.

Therefore, the objectives of this study are: 1) To compare the

water quality status and concentration of heavy metals in the

Johor River based on Class II outlined in the National Water

Quality Standards for Malaysia (NWQSM), and 2) To study the

relationship between the water quality and heavy metals

concentration in the Johor River in relation to major land uses

within the catchment area. The selection of the Class II outline in

NWQSM for comparison purposes was because there are villages

confined within the system, such as kampong Berangan where the

river is used for recreational purposes.

Figure 1: Study area and the water sampling stations of the Johor River

Table 1: The coordinates and the descriptions of the sampling

stations

Sampling

Station

Coordinate of the Sampling Station

Name

of the Latitude

river

Site Description

Cod

e no.

Longitude

Kota Tinggi Town, located in

1° 38' 4.4874"N 103° 58' 19.308"E the upstream, mainly consisting

of industrial areas

Johor

River

S 01

Johor

River

Seluyut 1°

River 41'56.7234"N

Johor 1° 41'

Sand mining, Oil Palm

1° 43' 35.832"N 103° 53' 58.5954"E

Plantation

S 02

S 03

S 04

Sand mining, Oil Palm

Plantation

103° 55' 32.0874"E

103° 56' 55.968"E Oil Palm Plantation

River 23.1354"N

Pulau Dendang, Oil Palm

103° 55' 53.8674"EPlantation, Surrounded with

mangrove and nipah trees

Johor 1° 39'

River 55.4394"N

S 05

Sengi

River

Johor 1° 35'

River 34.4034"N

Redan

River

Temon

River

S 06

S 07

S 08

S 09

1° 35' 3.9114"N 103° 59' 14.1714"EOil Palm Plantation

103° 57' 17.5314"EDownstream, Village

1° 37' 15.132"N 103° 58' 17.4"E

Oil Palm Plantation

Village, Urban area, Oil palm

plantation

1° 37' 6.24"N 103° 59' 1.032"E

Sand mining, Small restaurants

1° 36' 58.32"N 103° 57' 27.108"E close to the riverbank, Oil Palm

Plantation

Tiram

River

S 10

S 11

Johor 1° 37'

River 37.1994"N

103° 58' 2.1"E

Village, Oil Palm Plantation

Materials and Methods

.1 Study Area

Surface water samples were collected in pre-cleaned bottles

The study area selected for the present research is the Johor

from the eleven sampling stations. Three physicochemical

properties of water (temperature, salinity, and pH) were

determined on site by in-situ water quality checker (Horiba U-50

multi-parameter checker). Water samples for dissolved inorganic

nutrient concentrations (nitrate, nitrite, phosphate, and ammonia)

were syringe-filtered (0.2 µm pore-size Acrodisc filters) into

polypropylene centrifuge tubes, frozen in a liquid nitrogen dry

shipper in the field, and stored at -20 ºC until analysis on a SEAL

AA3 segmented-flow auto-analyser system using SEAL methods

for seawater analysis. Concentrations for all nutrients were

measured in µmol/L and converted into mg/L. For total suspended

solid (TSS) measurements, 1 L of surface river water was

River basin located in Johor, Peninsular Malaysia (Figure 1). The

catchment area is around 2636 km and the mainstream length is

around 122.7 km [20]. The tributaries of the Johor River include

the Seluyut River, Sengi River, Redan River, Temon River, and

Tiram River. The mean discharge rate of the Johor River is 37.5

m /s. The annual mean rainfall intensity in this region is about

360 mm, with mean temperature is around 27 °C.

.2 Sampling Collection and Analysis

As mentioned earlier, 11 water sampling stations were

selected along the Johor River (Figure 1). 6 out of 11 sampling

stations were at the mainstream of the Johor River and the other

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2020, Volume 8 Issue 3, Pages: 961-966

collected from each station and filtered through a pre-weighed 25-

mm diameter Whatman GF/F filter and stored at -20 ºC until sent

to the laboratory. Samples were dried for 24 h at 75 ºC and re-

weighed on a Mettler-Toledo microbalance, and were expressed

in mg/L. A total of 11 surface water samples were collected and

preserved from the sampling stations to measure and analyse the

heavy metals concentration. The water samples were digested by

following the standard methods APHA 3030K Microwave-

Assisted Digested and were analysed by ICP-MS following the

standard methods of APHA 3120B. Nine most-commonly

reported heavy metal elements, namely iron (Fe), copper (Cu),

arsenic (As), manganese (Mn), silver (Ag), zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni),

lead (Pb), and chromium (Cr) were selected, analysed, and

presented in this paper (Wuana & Okieimen, 2011).

Correlation coefficient (r) is a statistical analysis of the

interdependence of two or more random variables [14]. The

correlation coefficients for all the water parameters were

calculated to determine the relationship between the

physiochemical water quality parameter and heavy metals

concentrations.

30.0

0.5

28.0

27.5

9.5

9.0

8.5

7.0

S 1 S 2 S 3 S 4 S 5 S 6 S 7 S 8 S 9

Sampling station

S S

10 11

S 1S 2 S 3S 4S 5S 6 S 7S 8S 9 S

Sampling station

10 11

(

(b)

TSS

NWQSM

6.4

S 1S 2S 3S 4S 5S 6S 7S 8S 9 S

10 11

0 11

Sampling station

(d)

(c)

Nitrite

1.40

Ammonia

NWQSM

Results and Discussion

The results of the physicochemical parameter of water

.20

.00

.80

NWQSM

samples were presented in Figure 2. The physicochemical water

parameters considered in this study included temperature, salinity,

pH, TSS, phosphate, nitrite, nitrate, and ammonia concentration.

Figure 2 (a) shows the temperature of the river water samples. The

temperature range of the water samples was between 28.3 to 30.2

3.0

2.0

0.60

0.40

0.20

.00

S 1S 2S 3S 4S 5S 6S 7S 8S 9 S

0 11

°C, which satisfied the Class II outlined in the NWQSM (normal

10 11

Sampling station

+2 °C). Figure 2 (b) presents the salinity of the river water

(e)

(f)

increased down the river from 0.5 mg/L to 26.8 mg/L. The river

flows in a roughly north-south direction end out with the sea

water. The saltwater intrusion might cause the salinity of the

downstream water to be higher than the upstream. The pH range

of the water samples was between 6.8 and 7.5 within the range for

the Class II (6 to 9). The TSS concentrations were still acceptable

for the Class II. The ammonia concentration guidelines for the

Class II is 0.3 mg/L, where stations S 01 to S 03 exceeded the

threshold level whereas the other stations were still within the

acceptable limit, ranged from below the detection limit (BDL) to

Nitrate

Phosphate

NWQSM

.25

NWQSM

8.00

.20

.15

.10

.00

5.00

.00

0.05

0.00

S 1S 2S 3S 4S 5S 6S 7S 8S 9 S

0 11

10 11

Sampling station

.3 mg/L. The highest ammonia concentration was found in

(g)

(h)

station S 01 (3.93 mg/L). The level observed herein was slightly

higher compared to the average concentration obtained by Yusop

et al. (2017) who sampled the water in Kota Tinggi town (2.86

mg/L) [8]. It is tentatively hypothesised that it originates from

Kota Tinggi town because the high ammonia concentration was

found in Kota Tinggi town [8]. The present study showed a lower

nitrate concentration (less than 7 mg/L), which satisfied the Class

II. The nitrite concentrations ranged from 0.11 to 1.19 mg/L

exceeded the acceptable threshold of 0.04 mg/L. This might be

since nitrite is in an unstable state in the oxidation of ammonia to

nitrate [21]; therefore, the nitrite concentration increased as the

ammonia concentration decreased in Figure 2 (f) and (h).

However, the nitrate and nitrite concentrations were still

considered quite low. The phosphate concentrations satisfied the

Class II with the acceptable threshold of 0.2 mg/L. The nutrient

concentrations (nitrate, nitrite, and phosphate) in the Johor River

were considered quite low and no significant nutrient pollution

was found in this study.

Figure 2: The physicochemical parameters of water samples collected

from the Johor River: (a) temperature, (b) salinity, (c) pH, (d) TSS, (e)

ammonia, (f) nitrite, (g) nitrate, and (h) phosphate

Heavy metals reviewed in this paper included some

significant metals such as Fe, Cu, As, Mn, Ag, Zn, Ni, Pb, and Cr.

The selected heavy metal concentrations of the sampling stations

were determined and showed in Figure 3. The heavy metal

concentrations of iron (Fe) and copper (Cu) of all sampling

stations were found to be exceeding the Class II, like arsenic (As)

concentration at all sampling stations except S 02. The detected

Fe concentrations ranged from 1.75 to 6.9 ppm, which is more

than the allowable limit of 1 ppm. The Cu concentrations ranged

from 0.06 to 1.34 ppm, also exceeding the acceptable threshold of

.02 ppm. As concentrations were found ranging from 0.01 to 0.29

ppm, which is more than the limit allowed in the guidelines (0.05

mg/L).

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2020, Volume 8 Issue 3, Pages: 961-966

were detected at S 09 with 6.9, 1.34, and 0.29 ppm, respectively.

Fe has been reported to be present in significant amount in both

soil and rock [22]. High Cu concentration might be due to

fertilizing activities because Cu is one of the micronutrients for oil

palm cultivation and also it is the main composition of chemical

fertilizers [23, 24]. Based on previous studies, the input of

arsenical herbicides and insecticide could contribute to As traces

in receiving river system [25, 26]. There are about 172 common

herbicides brands in Malaysia, which are glyphosphate-based

herbicides, containing Arsenic [27, 28, 29]. Therefore, Fe, Cu, and

As were hypothesized to originate from oil palm plantation area

adjacent to S 09.

Manganese (Mn) and silver (Ag) concentrations from most of

the stations were less than the Class II (0.1 and 0.05, respectively)

except at S 02 where the concentrations were 0.15 and 0.05 ppm,

respectively. Mn is commonly found in rocks and sediments,

which is transported into water through surface runoff [30]. Tesi

et al. (2019) and Ako et al. (2014) stated that the Mn and Ag

concentrations could be influenced by the sand mining as

observed to be present at this sampling site [31, 32]. This could be

concluded that the large amount of Mg and Ag are highly possible

to be related to the sand mining activities around S 02.

.60

NWQSM

1.40

1.20

1.00

.80

.60

.40

0.20

S 1 S 2 S 3 S 4 S 5 S 6 S 7 S 8 S 9

Sampling station

.00

S 1S 2S 3S 4S 5S 6S 7S 8S 9 S

10 11

Sampling station

(

(b)

.16

NWQSM

.35

.30

.25

.20

.15

.10

.05

.00

0.14

0.12

0.10

0.08

0.06

0.04

0.02

0.00

S 1S 2S 3S 4S 5S 6S 7S 8S 9 S

S 1S 2S 3S 4S 5S 6S 7S 8S 9S 1 0S 11

Sampling station

0 11

Sampling station

(d)

(c)

The Ag, Zn, Ni, and Pb concentrations from all sampling

stations were below the Class II. Based on NWQSM, these

concentrations are not significant pollution source for water

resources. Chromium concentrations from most of the stations

were less than the Class II outlined in the NWQSM except at

stations S 08 and S 11 (which were recorded as 0.09 and 0.08 ppm,

respectively). According to literature, the chromium

concentrations commonly come from anthropogenic sources,

especially industrial waste produced by the production of

corrosion inhibitors and pigments [21, 33]. Stations S 08 and S 11

are surrounded with oil palm plantation, but there is not any

previously conducted study showing a relationship between the

oil palm plantation and the chromium concentration. Thus, further

studies are needed to determine the source of chromium

concentration.

.06

.05

.04

.03

.02

.01

.00

NWQSM

.16

0.14

.12

.10

.08

0.06

.04

.02

.00

S 1S 2S 3S 4S 5S 6S 7S 8S 9 S

S 1 S 2 S 3 S 4 S 5 S 6 S 7 S 8 S 9

Sampling station

10 11

(e)

(f)

NWQSM

.06

.05

.04

.03

.02

.01

.00

0.0250

.0200

.0150

.0100

The correlation between the physicochemical parameter and

the heavy metal concentration was calculated and presented in

Table 2. A significant correlation was observed in the change of

several heavy metal concentration with TSS concentration.

0.0050

.0000

S 1S 2S 3S 4S 5S 6S 7S 8S 9 S

Table 2: The correlation coefficient between physicochemical

parameters and heavy metal concentrations.

0 11

Sampling station

10 11

(g)

(h)

Temp

Salinity

TSS

Nitrite

Phosphate

Ammonia

Nitr

NWQSM

0.30

-0.04

0.17

0.00

0.11

-0.36

0.11

0.42

-0.31

0.40

0.12

0.37

-0.22

0.38

0.26

0.06

-0.06

-0.38

-0.04

0.25

0.36

-0.29

0.43

0.00

0.12

-0.01

0.30

-0.25

0.13

-0.

.10

.08

.06

.04

.02

.00

0.35

*0.52

*0.54

**0.80

-0.10

-0.16

-0.28

-0.27

-0.22

-0.34

-0.19

0.02

-0.

-0.37

-0.01

0.05

-0.14

0.25

S 1S 2S 3S 4S 5S 6S 7S 8S 9 S

0 11

-0.02

**0.73

-0.12

-0.

Sampling station

0.51

*-0.65

0.39

-0.24

0.33

-0.07

-0.31

-0.06

0.04

-0.40

*0.55

0.47

*0.

-0.

(

Figure 3: The heavy metal elements concentration in surface water of

the sampling stations: (a) Fe, (b) Cu, (c) As, (d) Mn, (e) Ag, (f) Zn,

g) Ni, (h) Pb, and (i) Cr

0.34

-0.26

** very strong correlation

strong correlation

(

The correlations between Ag concentration with temperature

Based on Figure 3, the highest Fe, Cu, and As concentrations

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2020, Volume 8 Issue 3, Pages: 961-966

and salinity were -0.51 and -0.65, respectively, which indicates a

negative significant relationship. The correlation between the Ag

concentration and nitrate concentration was 0.55, which indicates

a positive significant relationship. Both Pb and phosphate

concentrations were 0.55, which indicates a positive significant

relationship.

submitted work is original and has not been published elsewhere

in any language.

Competing interests

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest that

would prejudice the impartiality of this scientific work.

very strong relationship was found between TSS

concentration and Cu and As (with correlation coefficient of 0.8

and 0.73, respectively). The correlation between Fe and Ni

concentrations and TSS concentration were 0.52 and 0.54,

respectively, which is considered a strong correlation. The heavy

metals are carried along with organic load and/or sediment [14].

Therefore, this is probably due to the suspended sediment brought

along the Cu, As, Fe, and Ni into the channel through surface run-

off. The highest concentrations of TSS, Cu, and As were found in

SC 9; this can support the predictive statement that the surface

sediment carries heavy metals from anthropogenic sources into

the river water.

Authors’ contribution

K.V. Annammala, P.Martin and M.Z.M. Najib collected

the samples and carried out the experiment. Y.Q. Liang wrote

the manuscript with support from K.V. Annammala, E.L. Yong

and L.S. Mazilamani. All the authors provided critical

feedback to improve the manuscript.

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