Water Quality Assessment of the Cutuchi River Basin (Ecuador): A Review of Technical Documents

Abstract

The Cutuchi River Basin extends over the inter-Andean valley south of the Cotopaxi Volcano, in Ecuador. It flows through two provinces, Cotopaxi and Tungurahua, and its waters are extensively used to irrigate crops that provide food to the main cities in the country. Unfortunately, the basin receives untreated domestic and industrial discharges. The need for an environmental quality assessment of the river has been acknowledged over the years. The aim of this study is to gather information about water quality of the Cutuchi River through a historical bibliographic review. A total of 57 works published between 2007 and 2018 were found, including books, articles, thesis and project reports. Only 18 documents provided biological, physical, or chemical data linked to water quality. The data obtained through the literature review were compared with maximum thresholds from national and international regulations. Unfortunately, revised studies were scattered on time and randomly along the basin and did not provide robust information to evaluate the state of the water-system. Some contamination was detected significantly exceeding safety thresholds. More exhaustive studies along the basin are needed as a baseline to help the decision makers to design management plans and mitigate human impacts.