Determination of component composition and qualitative characteristics of organic substance by spectral characteristics of water of the river Svisloch section in the summer period

Abstract

On the section of the Svisloch River – the main waterway of the Minsk city with a cascade of reservoirs in the summer months of 2016 there were studied the spatial distribution of the total pool of organic matter (OM) and its composition (dissolved and suspended fractions, chlorophyll a content – indirect indicator of phytoplankton biomass). Generally accepted in hydrobiology methods were used with simultaneous determination of the spectral characteristics of water, what was their first use for the river system in Belarus. The observations were carried out in the coastal zone at 9 sections of the watercourse from the headwaters to the exit from the city. The picture of temporal and spatial changes of all studied parameters downstream of the channel and reservoir areas is given. Particular attention was paid to identifying the relationship of the components of organic matter with the content of chlorophyll a and the spectral characteristics of water. A close relationship of all OM components was revealed with the chlorophyll a content, which indicates the priority role of the phytoplankton community in the formation of organic matter as well as their relationship with the optical characteristics of water that can be used for operational environmental monitoring.