Physico-Chemical Characterization of an Urban Hydrosystem (Ebolowa Municipal Lake, South-Cameroon): Application of the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) for the Water Typology Identification

This study was carried out in order to characterize on the physico-chemical level the waters of Ebolowa Municipal Lake. To study this hydrosystem, three sampling sites (S1, S2 and S3) were monitored throughout a seasonal cycle, to identify the lake water typology based on the characteristics of effluents discharged in to it. Fifteen parameters were measured in the field and in the laboratory on the three sites. The results obtained have been subject to multi-variate statistical treatment via the Principal Component Analysis (PCA), and revealed that sampling sites S1 and S3 are the most polluted, while site S2 shows moderate pollution. Three distinct water typology groups were highlight : the first one corresponding to waters of site S1, is the group of water rich in organic matter ; the second one, group of mineralized, deep and oxygen rich waters correspond to waters of site S2 ; and the last one corresponding to waters of site S1 is the group of turbid waters rich in suspended matters. The anthropic activities developing near this water body are undoubtedly the cause of this pollution.