Monitoring and Asessment Flashcards
Monitoring
processess and actiivities that need to take place to characterize and monitor the quality parameters of waters
On site monitoring
a monitoring device is integrated into the location of interest (for example reads out oxygen concentration every hour)
Goals of monitoring
- water quality assessment (based on regulations/standards)
- pollution screening
- trend analysis
- process monitoring
- load monitoring
- load assessment (flow and concentraton)
- Validation and calibration of models
types of monitoring
-operative monitoring
- surveillance monitoring
- investigative monitoring
types of data collection
- based on grab samples (one sample at one place and one time)
- semi-continuous and continoooooous sampling (automated sampling station or monitoring sesnors)
- passive sampling (adsorption of substances on sampling media)
- remote surveillance (on site monitoring equipment to be connected to a base station via eg. telemetry network)
- remote sensing (satellites for monitoring using multi-channel sensors)
- Biomonitoring (use of living organisms as monitoring tools)
Parameters of monitoring
- chemical/physical parameters
- biological parameters
- microbiological parameters
- hydro-morphological parameters
sample
properties must represent the properties of the sampled medium
heterogenity of the media can make sampling harder, for example through temporal changes in flow and concentration
selection of samples (time and space)
- judgmental sampling (based on knowledge of sampling are)
- simple random sampling
- stratified sampling (sampling units are related to homogeneous subunits of the media)
- systematic and grid sampling (based on spatial raster or constant time intervals)
- adaptive cluster sampling (simple random sampling
- additionals samples if thesholds are exceeded
grab samples
represent only the composition at a specific time and place, if the composition is constant a longer time and larger volume is represented, if it is not samples have to be taken regularly and analysed separately
composite sample
resulting from the average of collected samples over a time period, more representative, saves time and expenses, can be performed continuous and discontinuous. Other types of composite samples are Event controlled samples (measuring device on automatic sampler, releases sampling when threshold is reached) and integrated samples (mixtures of many samples through a whole profile).
EU WFD
The member states have to chieve good surface water status and protect and enhance bodies of water with the aim of achieving good ecological potential and chemical status. The combination of ecologicaal and chemical status is the surface water status.
Biological quality components are indicators for changes of environmental factors (pressures) because the quatic community is very sensitive to those changes.
Chemical status
- priority (hazardous) substances
- EU-requirements (obligatory list of chemicals)
- Environmental quality standards EQS
- Organic and inorganic pollutants (like metals and pesticides)
Ecological staus
- Biological criteria (trophic + saprobic + fish inde)
- hydromorphological conditions
- physio-chemical conditions and chmeistry (temperature, oxygen, salinity, pH + specififc pollutants)
Type specific approach
best status: Natural conditions
schema: based on type specific reference conditions
examples can be eco-bioregions
quantitative assessment of status of water bodies
- determination of actual situation
- comparison with reference
- assessment of status based on the deviation (5 stages)
If the good status can’t be reached a program of measures has to be developed. It follows the “one out - all out” principle -> the worst parameter/element determines the total assessment
