Content of heavy metals in the rivers of the Кaliningrad region

Abstract

Heavy metals (HM) occupy leading positions among the pollutants of rivers, streams, channels, lakes, as well as groundwater. In large quantities, HM have a negative impact on living organisms. Their spread occurs quite quickly and leads to degradation of the water body. This paper presents the results of a study of eight water bodies having a commercial category. The studied watercourses flow through the territory of Gusevsky, Chernyakhovsky, Ozersky, Nesterovsky and Slavsky districts of the Kaliningrad region. All studies have been carried out in accordance with the requirements of the documents regulating this type of work. Samples have been taken from the upper horizon during the summer autumn, the content of heavy metals such as iron, lead, cadmium, copper, nickel has been studied. The main sources of anthropogenic impact in the basins of the studied rivers have been determined. After processing the results of laboratory studies of water, it has been found that exceedances of the maximum permissible concentrations (MPC) of iron can be observed in all the studied sites; there has been no excess of the MPC for cadmium; in a sample taken in the alignment of the Osa river an increased content of lead and copper has been found; in the water samples of the Krasnaya, Russkaya, Golubaya rivers there are exceedances of MPC in nickel and copper content; excess of MPC in copper content has been found in the sample of the Putilovka river. Correlation analysis shows that there is no significant level of stochastic relationship between the concentrations of heavy metals (except for Cu and Cd; Cu and Ni), this indicates different sources of HM intake into the studied water bodies.