Abstract

The main canal (Masraf El-Moheet) is one of the largest canals in Giza governorate (Egypt).Due to the extended domestic activities and urbanization as well as the continuous industrial and agricultural growth of the region, water quality is potentially changing and causes fish floating and death. This study was conducted to measure toxic metals concentrations in water samples along the main channel using ICP Spectrometer (iCAP 6000 Series; Thermo Scientific). The most pronounced feature is the highest concentration of Fe, NH₄, Al, Pb and Cr in main canal (35.28, 11.55, 9.318, 0.386 and 0.748 mg L^-1, respectively) when compared with World Health Organization, United States Environmental Protection Agency and Egyptian Organization for Standardization and Quality Control. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) of metals levels showed significant difference among the regions. The present results showed that the collected water samples based on the higher levels of metal accumulation could be the first reason for fish floating and death in these regions, in addition to unsafe use for human consumption.

Key words: Water pollution, heavy metals, anions radicals, fish floating, Giza canals.