Water quality assessment of UMK lake and the effect of seaweed treatment

Lakes have been known as fresh water resources to mankind and have been labeled as the best available freshwater source on the Earth’s surface. Due to man-made pollutant and wastewater that comes from agricultural site and drainage from laboratories nearside UMK Lake, the lake nowadays being restricted from any human activities. Thus, by treating the UMK Lake water with seaweed, the water can be free from any pollutant. The objectives of this study are to measure the physical-chemical parameter of UMK Lake, to treat the water with red algae species which is Kappaphycus alvarezii and then the treated water sample measured again. The quality of UMK Lake is identified in four lake water parameter which is total dissolved solid (TDS), pH, turbidity and biological oxygen demand (BOD). As for the sample, it comes from two type source which is non-point source and point source. Point source water sample likely to have high value in all parameter while the non-point source water sample has slightly low value in all parameter. Parameter of water quality analyzed in this study state that the total dissolved solid range from 27 mg/L to 46 mf/L before the seaweed treatment increasing to value up from 60 mg/L to 71 mg/L after the seaweed treatment, for BOD value, the result before seaweed treatment range from 30.6 mg/L to 45 mg/L decreasing to value from 18.0 mg/L to 26.4 mg/L, for pH value, the result before seaweed treatment range from 7.7 to 8.2 and decreasing from 7.0 to 8.0 after seaweed treatment and for turbidity value, the result before seaweed treatment show value from 8.58 NTU to 15.30 NTU increasing from 9.46 NTU to 18.45 NTU after the seaweed treatment. Except for pH value, all three of the parameter is exceed the standard value on National Lakes Water Quality Standard (NLWQS). After being treated with seaweed, pH and BOD parameter shows the decreasing value while for total dissolved solid and turbidty value, it shows an increasing value which may come from the seaweed particles itself. However after being treated with seaweed, the parameter values still not reach the acceptable value for any lake categories. By using red algae species, the unwanted pollutant can be decreased as it acts as absorber as the treatment likely to decrease the value of certain parameter.