Bioindicators Study

In cooperation with ICPDR, VITUKI performed the Study on Bioindicators the River Danube and its tributaries. The aim was to learn more about the accumulation of organic and inorganic micropollutants in sediments and biota and to analyze the macrozoobenthos. The study was carried out as a response to the assumption that the Kosovo conflict had an impact on the aquatic life in the Danube and its tributaries.

VITUKI Plc, Budapest, Hungary, performed the Study on Bioindicators, Inorganic and Organic Micropollutants in Selected Bioindicator Organism in the River Danube and its tributaries in co-operation with the Secretariat of the ICPDR. It was a follow-up activity to the UNEP/OCHA Balkan Task Force Mission, which investigated the environmental impacts of the Kosovo conflict in FRY in 1999.

The major aim of the Study on Bioindicators was to investigate the accumulation of organic and inorganic micropollutants in sediments and biota and to analyze the macrozoobenthos in the Danube reach impacted by the Kosovo conflict. The Study was financially supported by the governments of Germany and Austria.

The sampling mission was carried out on 17-23 July 2000 by the VITUKI team with the support of Yugoslavian authorities.  The findings, interpretations and conclusions of the Study contribute to mapping of the quality status of the Danube reach, which has been excluded from the regular monitoring activities of the ICPDR (Transnational Monitoring Network) until now.

Downloads

• Bioindicators Study (848.77 KB)
  Study on Bioindicators, Inorganic and Organic Micropollutants in Selected Bioindicator Organisms in the River Danube and its tributaries, November 2000
• Annex 1 - Chemical Data (359.34 KB)
  Chemical data in sediment and different mussel species collected in the Danube and its tributaries in 2000
• Annex 2 - Photographic illustration (344.74 KB)
  Photographic illustration of the ICPDR sampling tour in Yugoslavia
• Annex 3 - Heavy metal concentrations (134.29 KB)
  Heavy metal concentrations in sediment and mussel samples collected in 2000

Related

• » TNMN - TransNational Monitoring Network
  The TransNational Monitoring Network is an important tool under the Danube River Protection Convention (DRPC), whose Contracting Parties are committed to co-operate in the field of monitoring and assessment. Formally launched in 1996, the TNMN aims to provide a well-balanced overall view of pollution and long-term trends in water quality and pollution loads in the major rivers in the Danube River Basin.