Appraising drinking water quality in Ikem rural area (Nigeria) based on chemometrics and multiple indexical methods Johnbosco C. Egbueri & Chimankpam K. Ezugwu & Peter D. Ameh & Chinanu O. Unigwe & Daniel A. Ayejoto Received: 2 October 2019 /Accepted: 3 April 2020 # Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 Abstract The continuous deterioration of drinking wa- ter quality supplies by several anthropogenic activities is a serious global challenge in recent times. In this current study, the drinking water quality of Ikem rural agricul- tural area (southeastern Nigeria) was assessed using chemometrics and multiple indexical methods. Twenty-five groundwater samples were collected from hand-dug wells and analyzed for physicochemical pa- rameters such as pH, major ions, and heavy metals. The pH of the samples (which ranged between 5.2 and 6.7) indicated that waters were slightly acidic. Cations and anions (except for phosphate) were within their respec- tive standard limits. Except for Mn, heavy metals were also found to be below their maximum allowable limits. Factor analysis identified both geogenic processes and anthropogenic inputs as possible origins of the analyzed physicochemical parameters. Modified heavy metal in- dex, geoaccumulation index, and overall index of pol- lution revealed that all the hand-dug wells were in excellent condition, and hence safe for drinking pur- poses. However, pollution load index, water quality index (WQI), and entropy-weighted water quality index Environ Monit Assess (2020) 192:308 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-020-08277-3 Highlights • Rural water supply in the study area currently does not face serious pollution threats. • Factor analysis successfully identified the possible sources of the physicochemical parameters. • Heavy metal index was modified and successfully used in the water quality assessment. • The indexical methods used in this study proved to be efficient in water quality assessment. • Hierarchical cluster analysis identified the wells that have slight pollution imprints. J. C. Egbueri (*) Department of Geology, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Uli, Nigeria e-mail: johnboscoegbueri@gmail.com e-mail: jc.egbueri@coou.edu.ng C. K. Ezugwu Department of Geology, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria P. D. Ameh Department of Applied Geology, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi, Nigeria P. D. Ameh School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS29JT, UK C. O. Unigwe Department of Physics/Geology/Geophysics, Federal University, Ndufu-Alike, Ikwo, Ikwo, Nigeria D. A. Ayejoto Department of Industrial Chemistry, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria