BAMAS - 4.2. Water quality of the Qaraoun Lake in the Litani basin, Lebanon

Water flowing in the Litani river drains towards the Qaraoun Lake. As such, the quality of the water in the Lake reflects to a great extent the quality of the River water, with some variations imposed by Lake dynamics (dilution, stratification, currents, sedimentation). As such, Lake water samples exhibited total and fecal coliform and ammonia levels exceeding drinking water standards in 60, 100, and 100 percent of the samples, respectively. High nitrate levels were also detected whereby 73 percent of the samples exceeded the standards. Phosphate and sulfate levels which were acceptable in the river water were also acceptable in the Lake water samples. (3.2.2 Qaraoun Lake - p.25, Appendix H. Lab analysis results - p. 112)