Utilización de Índices Evaluadores de la Calidad del Agua, Basados en Bioindicadores, en Ecuador

This is a bibliographic review about technical documents that report the use of water quality assessment indexes based on the presence and abundance of aquatic macroinvertebrates as bioindicators: The evaluation of these organisms in a body of water is usually considered as a simple and quick method to determine the state of the aquaculture system in most countries of the world. In the researches reviewed, the biometric indices BMWP and ETP are the most frequently used, these indices are based on the tolerance of macroinvertebrates to pollution and that is reflected in the presence of these animals’ sensitive families according to their tolerance to pollution. These methods generate valuable information on the health of ecosystems, but they leave aside variables that influence the diversity of macroinvertebrates, such as: altitudinal gradients, native taxa, among others. The BMWP indexes for Antioquia and for Colombia are the most commonly used traditional methods in Colombia and Ecuador as a reference to determine tolerance of organisms to changes in water quality. Recently, it has been observed that the IMEERA multi-metric and ABI uni-metric indices are being used more and more to obtain more robust results regarding the water quality of the evaluated ecosystems. These indices respond better to local realities, especially in high Andean systems. Product of the research we suggest the need to use unified indices according to the ecosystem (tropical or Andean) that are addressed, that better reflect the diversity and environmental variables of Ecuador.