Author: tikatuwq developers

# tikatuwq: Water Quality Indices and Temporal Trends

#### tikatuwq developers

## 1 Introduction

This vignette focuses on the methods implemented in tikatuwq for computing water quality indices and analyzing temporal trends. We cover:

- Water Quality Index (IQA/WQI) calculation methods
- Trophic State Index (IET) for lakes and reservoirs
- Temporal trend analysis using robust and parametric methods
- Parameter-specific analysis tools

## 2 Water Quality Index (IQA/WQI)

### 2.1 Method overview

The IQA combines sub-indices (Qi) for individual parameters using weighted arithmetic mean. The sub-indices are obtained by piecewise-linear interpolation over approximate curves (CETESB/NSF style).

    library(tikatuwq)
    data("wq_demo", package = "tikatuwq")

### 2.2 Default parameters and weights

The default IQA implementation uses 9 parameters with standard weights:

    # Default weights
    default_weights <- c(
      od = 0.17,
      coliformes = 0.15,
      dbo = 0.10,
      nt_total = 0.10,
      p_total = 0.10,
      turbidez = 0.08,
      tds = 0.08,
      pH = 0.12,
      temperatura = 0.10
    )

    # Check sum equals 1
    sum(default_weights)
    #> [1] 1

### 2.3 Computing IQA

    # Compute IQA with default settings
    df_iqa <- iqa(wq_demo, na_rm = TRUE)

    # View results
    cols_show <- intersect(c("ponto", "IQA", "IQA_status"), names(df_iqa))
    head(df_iqa[, cols_show, drop = FALSE])
    #> # A tibble: 6 × 3
    #>   ponto         IQA IQA_status
    #>   <chr>       <dbl> <ord>
    #> 1 FBS-BRH-250  78.3 Boa
    #> 2 FBS-BRH-250  81.6 Boa
    #> 3 FBS-BRH-250  80.8 Boa
    #> 4 FBS-BRH-250  75.4 Boa
    #> 5 FBS-BRH-250  83.9 Boa
    #> 6 FBS-BRH-300  77.3 Boa

    # Distribution
    hist(df_iqa$IQA, breaks = 10, main = "IQA Distribution", xlab = "IQA")

### 2.4 Handling missing parameters

When `na_rm = TRUE`, weights are rescaled per row to use only available parameters:

    # Example with missing parameters
    df_missing <- wq_demo
    df_missing$tds <- NULL  # Remove one parameter

    df_iqa_missing <- iqa(df_missing, na_rm = TRUE)
    head(df_iqa_missing$IQA)
    #> [1] 77.29345 80.55940 79.63399 73.95017 83.01185 75.99429

### 2.5 Custom weights

You can provide custom weights:

    # Custom weights (must sum to 1)
    custom_weights <- c(
      od = 0.20,
      coliformes = 0.20,
      dbo = 0.10,
      nt_total = 0.10,
      p_total = 0.10,
      turbidez = 0.10,
      tds = 0.10,
      pH = 0.05,
      temperatura = 0.05
    )

    df_iqa_custom <- iqa(wq_demo, pesos = custom_weights, na_rm = TRUE)
    cols_show2 <- intersect(c("IQA", "IQA_status"), names(df_iqa_custom))
    head(df_iqa_custom[, cols_show2, drop = FALSE])
    #> # A tibble: 6 × 2
    #>     IQA IQA_status
    #>   <dbl> <ord>
    #> 1  81.2 Boa
    #> 2  85.1 Boa
    #> 3  84.2 Boa
    #> 4  77.4 Boa
    #> 5  87.9 Boa
    #> 6  81.1 Boa

### 2.6 Classification

The IQA values are automatically classified into qualitative categories:

    # Classification function
    classify_iqa(c(15, 40, 65, 80, 95))
    #> [1] Muito ruim Ruim       Regular    Boa        Otima
    #> Levels: Muito ruim < Ruim < Regular < Boa < Otima

    # English labels
    classify_iqa(c(15, 40, 65, 80, 95), locale = "en")
    #> [1] Very Poor Poor      Fair      Good      Excellent
    #> Levels: Very Poor < Poor < Fair < Good < Excellent

    # Distribution in demo data
    table(df_iqa$IQA_status)
    #>
    #> Muito ruim       Ruim    Regular        Boa      Otima
    #>          0          0          0         20          0

## 3 Trophic State Index (IET)

### 3.1 Carlson IET

For lentic systems, the Carlson Trophic State Index uses Secchi depth, chlorophyll-a, and total phosphorus:

    # Example dataset with required parameters
    # df_lake <- data.frame(
    #   ponto = c("L1", "L2"),
    #   secchi = c(2.5, 1.0),  # meters
    #   clorofila = c(5, 20),  # ug/L
    #   p_total = c(0.02, 0.10)  # mg/L (converted to ug/L internally)
    # )
    #
    # iet_carlson(df_lake, .keep_ids = TRUE)

The function automatically: - Converts p_total (mg/L) to tp (ug/L) if needed - Accepts aliases (sd for secchi, chla for clorofila) - Returns TSI values with classification

### 3.2 Lamparelli IET

Similar to Carlson but with different equations and thresholds:

    # iet_lamparelli(df_lake, .keep_ids = TRUE)

## 4 Temporal Trend Analysis

### 4.1 Single parameter trend

The `trend_param()` function computes Theil-Sen slope and Spearman correlation:

    # Add temporal structure to demo data
    df_temporal <- wq_demo
    df_temporal$data <- as.Date("2025-01-01") + seq_len(nrow(df_temporal)) - 1

    # Compute trend for turbidity
    trend_result <- trend_param(df_temporal, param = "turbidez")

    print(trend_result)
    #>        rio       ponto    param n   date_min   date_max days_span
    #> 1 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-250 turbidez 5 2025-01-01 2025-01-05         4
    #> 2 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-300 turbidez 5 2025-01-06 2025-01-10         4
    #> 3 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-450 turbidez 5 2025-01-11 2025-01-15         4
    #> 4 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-950 turbidez 5 2025-01-16 2025-01-20         4
    #>   slope_per_year intercept rho_spearman p_value      trend pct_change_period
    #> 1             NA        NA           NA      NA indefinido                NA
    #> 2             NA        NA           NA      NA indefinido                NA
    #> 3             NA        NA           NA      NA indefinido                NA
    #> 4             NA        NA           NA      NA indefinido                NA

The result includes: - `slope`: Theil-Sen slope - `p_value`: Spearman correlation p-value - `trend`: classification (increasing, decreasing, stable)

### 4.2 Plotting trends

    library(ggplot2)

    # Plot with trend line
    p_trend <- plot_trend(df_temporal, param = "turbidez", method = "theilsen")
    print(p_trend)

    # With LOESS smoothing
    p_loess <- plot_trend(df_temporal, param = "turbidez", method = "loess")
    print(p_loess)

### 4.3 Multiple parameters

Use `param_trend_multi()` to analyze trends across multiple parameters:

    # Trends for multiple parameters
    params <- c("turbidez", "od", "dbo")
    trends_multi <- param_trend_multi(df_temporal, parametros = params)

    print(trends_multi)
    #> # A tibble: 12 × 7
    #>    rio      ponto           slope p_value       r2     n parametro
    #>    <chr>    <chr>           <dbl>   <dbl>    <dbl> <int> <chr>
    #>  1 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-250 -2.17e+ 0  0.904  5.66e- 3     5 turbidez
    #>  2 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-300  6.04e+ 0  0.793  2.67e- 2     5 turbidez
    #>  3 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-450 -1.86e+ 0  0.674  6.69e- 2     5 turbidez
    #>  4 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-950 -2.04e+ 0  0.468  1.86e- 1     5 turbidez
    #>  5 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-250  2.54e- 1  0.286  3.58e- 1     5 od
    #>  6 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-300  2.20e- 1  0.253  4.00e- 1     5 od
    #>  7 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-450 -4.43e- 1  0.199  4.74e- 1     5 od
    #>  8 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-950 -5.85e- 1  0.478  1.79e- 1     5 od
    #>  9 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-250  2.91e-14  1.000  1.04e-26     5 dbo
    #> 10 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-300 -9.00e- 1  0.0577 7.50e- 1     5 dbo
    #> 11 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-450 -6   e- 1  0.182  5.00e- 1     5 dbo
    #> 12 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-950  1.99e-16  0.182  5.00e- 1     5 dbo

## 5 Parameter-specific Analysis

### 5.1 Summary statistics

    # Summary for one parameter
    summary_turb <- param_summary(df_temporal, parametro = "turbidez")
    print(summary_turb)
    #> # A tibble: 4 × 8
    #>   rio      ponto           n  mean    sd   min median   max
    #>   <chr>    <chr>       <int> <dbl> <dbl> <dbl>  <dbl> <dbl>
    #> 1 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-250     5  41.7 45.6    5.8   18.3 112
    #> 2 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-300     5  47.4 58.4    5.4   11.4 141
    #> 3 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-450     5  14.4 11.4    4      8.8  28.7
    #> 4 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-950     5  14.5  7.48   5.3   15    22

    # Multi-parameter summary
    summary_multi <- param_summary_multi(df_temporal, parametros = c("turbidez", "od", "dbo"))
    print(summary_multi)
    #> # A tibble: 12 × 9
    #>    rio      ponto           n  mean     sd   min median    max parametro
    #>    <chr>    <chr>       <int> <dbl>  <dbl> <dbl>  <dbl>  <dbl> <chr>
    #>  1 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-250     5 41.7  45.6    5.8   18.3  112    turbidez
    #>  2 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-300     5 47.4  58.4    5.4   11.4  141    turbidez
    #>  3 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-450     5 14.4  11.4    4      8.8   28.7  turbidez
    #>  4 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-950     5 14.5   7.48   5.3   15     22    turbidez
    #>  5 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-250     5  6.44  0.671  5.96   6.13   7.58 od
    #>  6 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-300     5  6.84  0.550  6.19   6.7    7.51 od
    #>  7 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-450     5  6.42  1.02   5.59   6.05   8.19 od
    #>  8 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-950     5  6.91  2.19   4.91   6.1   10.6  od
    #>  9 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-250     5  3.2   0.447  3      3      4    dbo
    #> 10 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-300     5  4.2   1.64   3      4      7    dbo
    #> 11 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-450     5  3.6   1.34   3      3      6    dbo
    #> 12 BURANHEM FBS-BRH-950     5  3     0      3      3      3    dbo

### 5.2 Parameter plots

    # Single parameter plot
    p1 <- param_plot(df_temporal, parametro = "turbidez")
    print(p1)

    # Multi-parameter plot
    p2 <- param_plot_multi(df_temporal, parametros = c("turbidez", "od", "dbo"))
    print(p2)

## 6 Statistical Methods

### 6.1 Theil-Sen estimator

The Theil-Sen method is robust to outliers:

    # Theil-Sen computes median of all pairwise slopes
    # For data with outliers, it is more reliable than OLS
    # Used by default in trend_param() and plot_trend()

### 6.2 Spearman correlation

Non-parametric test for monotonic trends:

    # Spearman correlation tests for monotonic relationship
    # Does not assume linearity
    # p-value indicates significance of trend

## 7 Best Practices

### 7.1 Choosing parameters for IQA

- Include all 9 default parameters when possible
- Use `na_rm = TRUE` if some parameters are missing
- Adjust weights only if you have domain knowledge

### 7.2 Handling censored values

- Use `nd_policy = "ld2"` (default) for conservative estimates
- Consider `nd_policy = "na"` if censored values should not influence results
- Document your choice in reports

### 7.3 Trend analysis

- Use Theil-Sen for robust estimates with outliers
- Require at least 4 observations per group for reliable trends
- Consider seasonal effects when analyzing temporal data

### 7.4 Units consistency

- Ensure all parameters use standard units (mg/L, NTU, etc.)
- Use `clean_units()` to convert if needed
- Document unit conversions in methodology sections

## 8 References

- Carlson, R. E. (1977). A trophic state index for lakes. Limnology and Oceanography, 22(2), 361-369.
- Lamparelli, M. C. (2004). Graus de trofia em corpos d’agua do estado de Sao Paulo: avaliacao dos metodos de monitoramento. Tese de Doutorado, Universidade de Sao Paulo.
- CETESB. (2021). Aguas superficiais: indice de qualidade das aguas (IQA). Companhia Ambiental do Estado de Sao Paulo.

## 9 Summary

This vignette covered:

1. IQA calculation with default and custom weights
2. Handling missing parameters
3. IET methods for lentic systems
4. Temporal trend analysis (Theil-Sen, Spearman)
5. Parameter-specific analysis tools

For workflow examples, see the “From raw water quality data to CONAMA report” vignette.