Salinisation process of Lake Sidi Boughaba, Kenitra, North Western, Morocco: A statistical approach

In order to determine the nature of the high salinisation rate of the waters of Lake Sidi Boughaba, which has been listed in the Ramsar list since 1980, 23 samples that were taken during four sampling operations were subjected to physicochemical analyses. The obtained results were processed using a combination of bi-varied methods (correlation tests) and multivariate statistical methods (principal component analysis - PCA). The physicochemical analyses reveal that they are alkaline waters with a pH ranging between 8.38 and 9.03, an electrical conductivity (EC) of the order of 12.4 to 17.4 mS∙cm-1, and high levels of Na+ and Cl-, up to 3700 and 6630 mg∙dm-3 respectively, indicating a marine origin of these waters. In addition, the statistical treatment revealed that the mineralisation of the waters of this ecosystem is controlled by four main mechanisms of the salinisation; the main mechanism underlying this strong mineralisation is due to the impact of the marine spray. The second-order processes are about the phenomenon of the ion exchange, the dissolution/precipitation of evaporitic and carbonate formations, the oxidation-reduction processes, notably the reduction of sulphates as well as biochemical phenomena due to the selective absorption of certain ions by fauna and flora.