Chapter 6
Quality Assessment of Water Resources
of River in Poland
Adam Solarczyk
Abstract The chapter presents an assessment of water quality in Polish rivers as
examined in 2010–2015 under the State Environmental Monitoring Programme.
Using selected averaged physicochemical indicator values, an analysis was made of
the spatial variability of mineral pollution (SEC, Total hardness), organic pollution
(BOD 5 , TOC) and biogenic pollution (TN and TP) in the rivers of the catchments
and subcatchments of the Vistula, the Odra, and the Baltic Sea. Graded indexation
of six quality characteristics (SEC, Total hardness, BOD 5 , TOC, TN, TP) characterising particular types of pollution has shown that there are rivers with high levels of
pollution in catchments in Wielkopolska, Kujawia and Górny ´
Sl˛ ask. There are very
low and low levels of pollution in mountain and foothill rivers of the Carpathians and
Sudetes, and in the Pomorze region of northern Poland. The longest rivers in Poland
(the Vistula and the Oder) and their main tributaries have different water qualities
that vary along their courses. Due to heavily mineralised drainage waters from bituminous coal mines in Górny ´
Sl˛ ask, the upper sections of the Vistula and Odra exceed
norms in terms of mineral substances, in particular, chloride and sulphate ions. In
over 63% of river Surface Water Bodies (SWBs) surveyed in 2010–2015 in Poland,
the quality of water in terms of physicochemical characteristics correspond to class
I and II standards according to the Water Framework Directive in force in Poland.
The physicochemical state of the rivers does not correlate with their biological state.
Only 36% of the surveyed river SWBs met the class I and II standards for biological
elements. In terms of physicochemical and biological water quality, only 28% of the
analysed Polish river SWBs are classified as being in a good or very good ecological
state in 2010–2015.
Keywords River water quality · Water framework directive · Vistula basin · Oder
basin · Poland
A. Solarczyk (B)
Department of Hydrology and Water Management, Faculty of Earth Sciences and Spatial
Management, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Lwowska 1, 87-100 Toru´ n, Poland
e-mail: adamsol@umk.pl
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
M. Zeleˇ náková et al. (eds.), Quality of Water Resources in Poland, Springer Water,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64892-3_6
121
Quality Assessment of Water Resources
of River in Poland
Adam Solarczyk
Abstract The chapter presents an assessment of water quality in Polish rivers as
examined in 2010–2015 under the State Environmental Monitoring Programme.
Using selected averaged physicochemical indicator values, an analysis was made of
the spatial variability of mineral pollution (SEC, Total hardness), organic pollution
(BOD 5 , TOC) and biogenic pollution (TN and TP) in the rivers of the catchments
and subcatchments of the Vistula, the Odra, and the Baltic Sea. Graded indexation
of six quality characteristics (SEC, Total hardness, BOD 5 , TOC, TN, TP) characterising particular types of pollution has shown that there are rivers with high levels of
pollution in catchments in Wielkopolska, Kujawia and Górny ´
Sl˛ ask. There are very
low and low levels of pollution in mountain and foothill rivers of the Carpathians and
Sudetes, and in the Pomorze region of northern Poland. The longest rivers in Poland
(the Vistula and the Oder) and their main tributaries have different water qualities
that vary along their courses. Due to heavily mineralised drainage waters from bituminous coal mines in Górny ´
Sl˛ ask, the upper sections of the Vistula and Odra exceed
norms in terms of mineral substances, in particular, chloride and sulphate ions. In
over 63% of river Surface Water Bodies (SWBs) surveyed in 2010–2015 in Poland,
the quality of water in terms of physicochemical characteristics correspond to class
I and II standards according to the Water Framework Directive in force in Poland.
The physicochemical state of the rivers does not correlate with their biological state.
Only 36% of the surveyed river SWBs met the class I and II standards for biological
elements. In terms of physicochemical and biological water quality, only 28% of the
analysed Polish river SWBs are classified as being in a good or very good ecological
state in 2010–2015.
Keywords River water quality · Water framework directive · Vistula basin · Oder
basin · Poland
A. Solarczyk (B)
Department of Hydrology and Water Management, Faculty of Earth Sciences and Spatial
Management, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Lwowska 1, 87-100 Toru´ n, Poland
e-mail: adamsol@umk.pl
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
M. Zeleˇ náková et al. (eds.), Quality of Water Resources in Poland, Springer Water,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64892-3_6
121