The target compounds of the cross matrix programme were Polychlorinated Dibenzo-p-dioxins and Dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs), Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), Polybrominated Diphenylethers (PBDEs), Organochlorine Pesticides (OCPs) and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs), all of them Semivolatile Organic Compound (SOC) classes which, depending on their lipophilicity and persistence, tend to accumulate in sediments and biota. In the aqueous phase SOCs distribute between dissolved phase and Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM), depending on their Octanol/Water partition coefficient (Ko/w) and the amount and type of SPM available. The transport within the water column is often associated with the hydraulic remobilization of sediments and the subsequent transport and re-sedimentation of SPM.
The scope of the cross-matrix sampling was to obtain spatially overlapping data involving sediment, SPM, water and biota from corresponding sites that would allow an insight into the interactions between the relevant compartments. Results from 23 sites are reported, covering the River Danube over a distance of 2600 km from Germany to the Black Sea.
The main objective of JDS 2 was to produce comparable and reliable information on water quality of the whole Danube and many of its main tributaries. Regarding the chemical status, an important objective was to obtain a dataset for priority pollutants according to the daughter directive of the Water Framework Directive (WFD).
Among the SOCs reported in this study, the following substances are included in the List of Priority Substances of the WFD, with Environmental Quality Standards (EQS) established (COMMON POSITION, ANNEX I, 2007):
Flame retardants such as PBDEs; OCPs such as Endosulfan, Hexachlorobenzene, Hexachlorocyclohexane, DDT and its metabolites, Cyclodiene pesticides (Aldrin, Dieldrin, Endrin, Isodrin), and the PAHs such as Naphthalene, Anthracene, Fluoranthene, Benzo(a)pyrene, Benzo(b)fluoranthene, Benzo(ghi)perylene, Benzo(k)fluoranthene, Indeno(123-cd)pyrene.
UMLAUF Gunther;
CHRISTOPH Eugen;
HUBER Tania;
MARIANI Giulio;
MUELLER Anne;
SKEJO Helle;
WOLLGAST Jan;
2008-11-25
ICPDR-International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River
JRC46707
http://www.icpdr.org/jds/files/ICPDR_Technical_Report_for_web_low_corrected.pdf,
https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC46707,
