Searching for traces in the sediment
Sediments act like a natural filter on pollutants. Heavy metals, microplastics or organic substances accumulate in the sediments of water bodies, making them an important indicator of water quality. The Umweltbundesamt, the Environment Agency Austria, analyses sediments regularly as part of the Austrian water quality monitoring and also imparts its know-how in sampling courses for experts. From the next course in May 2023, new sampling sets from the EU project SIMONA will be used.
Sediment monitoring provides an important contribution to water quality monitoring in the countries of the Danube area. This monitoring is implemented in different ways in the neighboring countries. In the SIMONA project (Sediment-quality Information, Monitoring and Assessment System), the basis was created for meaningful and comparable measurements and assessment of sediment pollution. The standardized sampling sets developed in the process were distributed to stakeholders in the Danube countries and can therefore be used in the partner countries in the future. On August 22, the Environment Agency Austria received one of these sets, which the expert organisation will also use in its sampling courses for chemical analyses in water bodies and sediments.
Sampling course groundwater, surface waters and sediments
From 23-25 May 2023, these new sampling sets from SIMONA will be used for the first time in Austria. In the sampling course for groundwater, surface waters and sediments, experts from technical offices and laboratories as well as employees of authorities and institutions, who are supposed to take quality-assured samples, learn about the preparation of sampling, the assessment of measuring points, the sampling itself as well as the treatment and preservation of the samples. In the practical part, the acquired knowledge is applied and consolidated in the field. The course is organized by the Environment Agency Austria on behalf of the Austrian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Regions and Water Management.
Under observation: heavy metals and organic pollutants
Chemical analysis in sediments is part of the trend monitoring within the scope of the national water quality monitoring. In this context, the Environment Agency Austria analyses the contamination of sediments with heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). This enables the experts to track down surface water pollution, in addition to monitoring of fishes and other organisms. The current measured values are compared with the results of sediment monitoring from the last 20 years in order to determine long-term changes in the sediments. In current analyses, the experts of the Environment Agency Austria are focusing, among other things, on microplastics, since it is assumed that these are also deposited particularly heavily in sediments. Trend monitoring complements the nationwide comprehensive monitoring programmes, which have been the basis for preventive water and environmental protection in Austria for the past 30 years.
