Temporal Analysis of Trends in Dissolved Organic Matter in Han River Water

Abstract

This study used the extensive monitoring datasets of the Korea Ministry of Environment to examine trends in dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in Han River raw water. To estimate the organic contents of water, we adopted allied parameters such as biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) as substitutes for DOC. Spatial and temporal analyses were performed on monthly BOD and COD data from 36 monitoring stations (14 for Main Han River, 7 for North Han River and 15 for South Han River) measured from 1989 to 2007. The results of trend analysis indicated that, on the whole, water quality according to BOD showed a downward trend at more than 67% of monitoring stations (9 for Main Han River, 6 for North Han River and 9 for South Han River). However, the water quality of COD showed an upward trend at more than 78% of monitoring stations (8 for Main Han River, 7 for North Han River and 13 for South Han River). The upward trend of COD contrary to the BOD trend indicates that there has been an increase in recalcitrant organic matter in Han River water that is not detectable by means of BOD.