Abstract
The article presents the results of investigations carried out on the 42 km long Vrgorska Matica River, which flows through the 15 km long Vrgorsko polje (polje = field) which covers an areaof 3000 ha, and is at 24 m a.s.l., located in Southern Croatia.It covers the years 1997–2000 after this field had been reclaimed for agricultural use.The purpose of the investigations was to evaluate the influence of the Vrgorska Matica River which is part of the catchment areaof the Trebizat River, on the water quality in Modro Oko Lakeand Prud Spring, which are used for water supply and are locateddownstream of the Vrgorska Matica River on the right bank of theNeretva River.The water quality was evaluated by using the quality index basedon the following nine parameters: temperature, mineralization, corrosion coefficient, K = (Cl + SO4)/HCO3, dissolvedoxygen, BOD5, total N, protein N, total phosphorus and totalcoliform bacteria (100 mL)-1 (MPN coli (100 mL)-1) for which concentrations C 95 are calculated. After completingthe nine parameters the results of C 95 were recorded andtransferred to the score table to obtain the q-value. The q-value used is an attempt to quantify environmental factors which would otherwise be qualitative. For each parameter the q-value was multiplied by a weighting factor based upon the relative significance of the parameter. The nine resulting scores values were then added to arrive at an overall water quality index (ΣS95).According to this index the water can be classified into four categories. The first category, according to the Croatian Water Classification Act (Official Bulletin No. 77,1998), includes ground and surface waters used for drinking or in the food industry either in its natural state or after disinfection, and surface water used for raising high-quality species of fish, ranging from 85–100 scores; the second category includes waterused in its natural state for swimming and recreation, sports orfor other species of fish and the treated water used for drinkingand other industrial purposes ranging between 70–85 scores. Thethird category includes water used in industry with no specific requests upon water quality and in agriculture ranging from 50–70 scores; the fourth category includes water used only afterbeing treated in areas with water shortage which is less than 50 scores.According to results obtained by investigations, the water of theVrgorska Matica River and Prud Spring falls into the second (II)category, while water from the Modro Oko Lake belongs to the first (I) category. This means that the Matica River water does not influence the water quality of the Modro Oko Lake. This lakewater quality is influenced by the Rastočka Matica River from theRastočko polje which is located upstream from the Vrgorska MaticaRiver. This has been proved by dyeing tests.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
AWWA: 1995, Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater. American Public Health Association, 19th ed., Washington, DC.
Barbalić, Z.: 1976, Properties of Water Resource Systems of Enclosed Karst Plains. Proc. Karst Hydrology and Water Resources, WRP 815-828.
Benedetti, A., Francaviglia, R., Canali, S. and Sequi, P.: 1995, 'Preventive measures under the italian code of good agricultural practice for the protection of waters from nitrates', Croatian Waters 3(12), 283-288.
Bögli, A.: 1980, Karst Hydrology and Physical Speleology, Springer-Verlag, Berlin, Heidelberg, New York.
Bonacci, O.: 1987, 'Karst Hydrology', Man's Influence on the Water Regime in the Karst Terrains, Springer-Verlag, pp. 150-173.
Bonacci, O. and Švonja, M.: 1984, 'Promjena vodnog režima Bažinskih jezera (Change of water regime of the Bažina Lake)', Građevinar 36(2), 53-58.
CEC: 1994, 'Desertification and Kind Degradation in the European Mediterranean', Report EUR 14850, Commission of the European Communities, Directorate-General XII, Brussel.
Direttiva del consiglio 91/676/CEE del 12 dicembre 1991. Relativa alla protezione delle acque dall' inquinamento provocato dai nitrati provenienti da fonti agricole.
European Economic Community: 1991, Council Directive of 12 December 1991 (91/676/EEC) Concerning the Protection of Waters against Pollution caused by Nitrates from Agricultural Sources, Official Journal of European Communities.
European Economic Community: 1992, Council Regulation 2078/92 on Agricultural Production Methods Compatible with the Requirements of the Protection of the Environment and Maintenance of the Country Side, Official Journal of the European Communities.
Knisel, W. G. (ed.): 1980, 'CREAMS: A Field Model for Chemicals Runoff and Erosion Agricultural Management Systems', v.s. Department of Agriculture, Science and Education Administation Conservation, Research Report No. 26, pp. 643.
Hadrill, M. V., Keffer, R., Olivetti, G. C., Polleri, G. B. and Gioronardi, G. T.: 1983, 'Eutrofication problems in Emilia Romagna, Italy', Water Res. 17(5), 383-385.
Larson, T. S. and Scold, R. W.: 1958, 'Laboratory studies relating mineral quality of water to corrosion of steel and cast iron', Corrosion 16, 285.
Leonard, R. A. and Knisel, W. G.: 1987, 'GLEAMS: Groundwater Loading Effects of Agricultural Management Systems', Trans. ASAE 30(5), 1403-1418.
Morari, R. and Giupponi, C.: 1994, 'Effects on Water Quality of Four Cultivation Systems for Maize Crop: Model Simulations', in C. Giupponi, A. Morani and F. Morari (eds), Proc. ESA Workshop Modelling the Fate of Agrochemicals and Fertiliser in the Environment, Venice, Italy, 3-5 March, pp. 485-502.
Niemi, J. S.: 1998, 'The quality of river waters in Finland', Eur. Water Manage. 1(3), 36-40.
OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development): 1982, Eutrofication of Waters Monitoring, Assessment and Control, OECD, Paris.
OECD: 1991, 'The State of the Environment', Annual Report, Paris.
Official Bulletin of Croatia, Government Printing Office. Croatian Water Classification Act. Zagreb, No. 77/1998.
Official Bulletin of Croatia, Government Printing Office. Croatian Regulations for Drinking Water. Zagreb, No. 46/1994.
Parr, J. F., Stewart, B. A., Harnick, S. B. and Singh, R. P.: 1990, 'Improving the sustainability of dryland farming systems: A global perspective', Advan. Soil Sci. 13, 1-8.
Sequi, P., Vianello, G. and Ciavata, C.: 1991, 'An Italian approach to the Determination of Areas Vulnerable to Pollution', in N. H. Batjes and E. M. Bridges (eds), Soil Vulnerability to Pollution in Europe, ISRIC, Wageningen, pp. g1-g7.
Sequi, P. and Vianello, G.: 1993, 'Fasi Preliminari di Lettera del Territorio Finalizzato allo Studio di Vulnerabilita Ambientale. in L'impatto delle Agro-technologie nel Bacino del Po (acuradi N. Polelli), Ed. Franco Angeli-Roma, pp. 273-277.
Sequi, P.: 1994, Il Progetto Finalizzato Produzione Agricola Nella Difesa dell' Ambiente (P.A.N.D.A.) Agricoltura Ricerca, Vol. 16, No. 154, pp. 146-192.
Stanners, D. and Bourdeau, P. (eds): 1995, Europe's Environment. The Dobbris Assessment, Compiled by Eurostat together with other Organizations, 455 pp.
Scottish Development Department: 1975, Towards Cleaner Water. Report of a River Pollution Survey of Scotland, HMSO, Edinburgh.
Slišković, I.: 1994, 'On the hydrogeological condition of western Herzegovina, (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and possibilities for new groundwater extractions', Geologica Croatica 47(2), 221-231.
Štambuk-Giljanović, N.: 1994, Waters of Dalmatia, Institute of Public Health Split, Split, 254 pp.
Štambuk-Giljanović, N.: 1998, Waters of Neretva River and its Catchment Area, Institute of Public Health Split, Split, 638 pp.
Štambuk-Giljanović, N.: 1999, 'Water quality evaluation by index in Dalmatia', Water Res. 33(16), 3423-3440.
Štambuk-Giljanović, N.: 2000, 'Characteristics and classification of water resources in Dalmatia', Eur. Water Manage. 3(5), 23-31.
USEPA: 1995, 'Compendium of Tools for Watershed Assessment and TMDL Development', Draft, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water, Washington, D.C.
USEPA: 1997, 'Monitoring Guidance for Determining the Effectiveness of Nonpoint Source Controls', Report EPA 841-B-96-004, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water, Washington, D.C.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Štambuk-Giljanović, N. The Water Quality of the Vrgorska Matica River. Environ Monit Assess 83, 229–253 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022600918066
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022600918066