Long-term variations of water quality parameters in the Maroon River, Iran.

Sixteen water quality parameters have been monitored at four stations located along the Maroon River during 1989-2008. The trend analysis was performed on seasonal and annual time-scales using the Mann-Kendall test, the Sen's slope estimator and the linear regression. The relationships of the water quality parameters to river discharge were also investigated. The statistical methods showed both positive and negative trends in annual water quality data. However, significant trends were detected by the statistical methods only in calcium, magnesium, sodium absorption ratio, pH, and turbidity series. The results indicated that the concentrations of the water quality parameters increased in spring and winter seasons, while the concentrations were diluted in summer and autumn seasons in the last two decades. Moreover, the highest numbers of significant trends were found in the spring and summer series, respectively. According to the regression analysis, most of the water quality parameters were negatively correlated with river discharge.