Identification of pollution sources in the Romanian Somes River using graphical analysis of concentration profiles

The paper describes a method for the identification of pollution sources along a river, based on the analysis of graphical information obtained from long-term monitoring data. Concentration profiles collected during 2004 at monthly resolution in the Romanian Somes River are employed. The graphical analysis method is based on the comparison of experimental concentration profiles against reference profiles showing concentration evolution along the river after pollutant release. Known nitrate and lead pollution sources along the river were used as reference in order to verify the applicability of the proposed method. Results show that the graphical analysis method enables detection of the majority of sources, and it could be used to investigate the seasonal existence of pollution sources. Moreover, the technique can help guide the definition of the structure of mathematical models for the transport of pollutants in rivers. (C) 2010 Curtin University of Technology and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.