The Mekong River Report Card on Water Quality ( 2000-2006 )

The report provides a summary of the MRC water quality monitoring data during the period from 2000-2006. The data are taken from 22 sampling sites in the mainstream of the Mekong River, from Northern Lao PDR to the Mekong Delta.


Background
The water resources of the Mekong River support the livelihoods of most of the 60 million people who live in the Lower Mekong Basin. Good water quality and a healthy environment of the Mekong River and its tributary ecosystems form the basis for these livelihoods. Water quality is a key determinant of environmental health.
The condition of the river, which at present has a good/acceptable water quality, must be maintained if we are to promote sustainable development within the Mekong River Basin. Water quality monitoring helps the basin's stakeholders to recognise changes in environmental conditions in sufficient time to take preventive and remedial action.
This Mekong River Report Card on Water Quality provides an overview of water quality parameters and the changes of key environmental stressors that may affect the river's aquatic life. It provides a summary of the MRC water quality monitoring data during the period from [2000][2001][2002][2003][2004][2005][2006]. The data are taken from 22 sampling sites in the mainstream of the Mekong River from Northern Lao PDR to the Mekong Delta. Assesssment of water quality in the tributaries and the Mekong Delta is presented in MRC Technical Paper

Water Quality Monitoring Network
In 1985, the MRC's predecessor, in response to riparian concerns over potential water pollution and its trans-boundary implications, began a water quality monitoring programme in the Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam. Cambodia later joined the programme in 1993. The member countries participate by carrying out water sampling at stations within their national territory and performing water quality analysis in designated laboratories. Overall programme coordination is provided by the MRC Secretariat in Vientiane.
The purpose of the MRC water quality monitoring programme is to provide timely data and information on the status and changes in water quality of the Mekong River Basin. This information can then be used by the relevant stakeholders.
The programme includes water quality monitoring for 87 permanent stations, of which 55 are primary stations (shown in the map) and 32 are secondary stations on the mainstream and important tributaries of the Mekong River. River water is sampled from the surface and the mid-stream on a monthly basis. As outlined in Table  1, 19 different parameters are measured.

Water quality for protection of aquatic life
Healthy aquatic life in the Mekong Basin depends on water of good quality, with acceptable concentrations of dissolved oxygen and low concentrations of toxic ammonia. It is also important that pH values are not too low. Balanced concentrations of nutrients are needed to support aquatic primary production.

Water quality indices
Based on a review of the scientific literature and statistical characteristics of available data at the MRC Secretariat database, six parameters and their guideline values were selected for assessing suitability of water quality for protection of aquatic life in the Mekong river (see Table 2).
Samples with a water quality within the range of the values in Table 2 were given a high rating as outlined in Table 3, while water samples with values outside the range of Table 2 were given a lower rating, depending on how far the values were from the given range. The Water Quality Indicator (WQI) for each station is calculated as a formula (1) and the WQI used in this assessment may require future adjustment. Where: • "p" is the number of points per sample day, (if DO, pH, NH 3 and Conductivity meet the guidelines in Table 2, two points are scored, otherwise zero points are scored; if NO 2-3 and Total-P meet the guidelines, one point is scored, otherwise the score is zero). • "n" is the number of sample dates in the year. • "M" is the maximum possible number of points for the measured parameters in the year. Note: This classification system has been revised from that used in MRC Technical Paper No 19 in consultation with the member countries.

Note:
-nd: no data -The number and station names in Table 4 are the same as those referred to in the WQI class map overleaf and in Figures 1a,1b, 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4a and 4b.

Water Quality Trends
Routine water quality monitoring data from 22 stations in the Mekong mainstream were statistically analysed. Four parameters -Total Suspended Solids (TSS), Total Phosphorous, Nitrite-Nitrate and Chemical Oxygen Demand -were tested by using boxplots and linear regression to detect change over time and spatial differences between sites.

Total Suspended Solid trends
Total Suspended Solids in the Mekong River are influenced by natural and anthropogenic (human) activities in the Basin, such as natural or excessive soil erosion from agriculture, forestry or construction, urban runoff, industrial effluents, or excessive phytoplankton growth.
Water samples are taken just below the water surface, so measurements do not reflect the sediment concentration in the whole water column. Nevertheless, the measures give a reasonable indication of the amount of sediment in the water.

Nutrient trends
Nitrogen and phosphorous occur in water in a variety of inorganic and organic forms, and the concentration of each form is primarily mediated by biological activity. Phosphorus and nitrogen are considered to be the primary drivers of eutrophication in aquatic ecosystems, when increased nutrient concentrations lead to increased primary productivity. Some systems are naturally eutrophic, whereas others have become eutrophic as a result of human activities ('cultural eutrophication') through factors such as runoff from farmland and the discharge of municipal waste into rivers.
Overall, the concentrations of nutrients at all mainstream stations are low, and do not indicate eutrophic status on the river. The concentrations of total phosphorous are low at most stations with the exception of Tan Chau, My Thuan, My Tho, Chau Doc and Can Tho. The concentrations of nitrite and nitrate are slightly elevated at Houa Khong, Chiang Saen, Vientiane, Nakhon Phanom, Khong Chiam, Stung Treng, Tan Chau, My Thuan, My Tho, Chau Doc and Can Tho stations. The nitrate and nitrite concentrations did not chang significantly between [2000][2001][2002][2003][2004][2005][2006] (Figures 2a and 2b) However, total phosphorous levels at the Mekong mainstream stations have varied to a great extent in recent years (Figures 3a and 3b).

Organic matter trends
Organic matter is important in the recycling of nutrients, carbon and energy between producers and consumers in the aquatic environment. External supply of organic matter that enters aquatic ecosystems from a drainage basin through point sources such as effluent outfalls, or non-point sources such as runoff from agricultural areas, can enhance the production and respiration of aquatic organisms (including microorganisms), and be followed by an increased oxygen demand. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) is commonly used to indirectly measure the amount of organic matter in water.
The COD concentrations are lowest in the upper part of the Mekong River, with COD levels increasing as the river flows towards the Mekong Delta. This trend is consistent with the trend of total phosphorous. Figures  4a and 4b indicate that COD concentrations have increased slightly over the last seven years. Still, 75% of monitoring data show values which are lower than 5 mg/l (Figures 4a and 4 b).

Toxic Contamination
Toxic chemicals in the environment include heavy metals and some organic compounds. These persistent pollutants cause specific problems in aquatic environments as they are often accumulated into the food chains. A diagnostic study of water quality in the Lower Mekong Basin conducted between [2003][2004] showed that the surface water of the Lower Mekong was relatively unpolluted by industrial organic pollutants, pesticides and heavy metals.
The results from bottom sediment analyses and bioassay, (where persistent pollutants can remain for many years), indicated that heavy metals mostly occurred at lower concentrations than their Threshold Effect Concentration. However, the bioassay tests indicated a few sites at the Lao-China border, Vientiane, Neak Loung, Tan Chau and Chau Doc, where toxicity was observed, and further studies are needed before any conclusions can be drawn.

Important notes and future needs for water quality monitoring
Water conservation for sustainable development • Protecting and restoring a complex water resource like the Mekong River Basin alongside dynamic economic development is a permanent challenge.
• More than 60 million people rely on the resources of the basin for their livelihoods.
• Preserving a healthy Mekong River Basin is vital for the next generation.

Water quality threats
• Population growth, intensive agricultural and aquaculture, navigation and hydropower dams, all contribute to a changing environment, often with an increased input of chemicals, which ultimately may affect the aquatic ecosystem and human health in the Mekong River Basin.
• Industrial waste and oil spills are emerging threats which need to be addressed through common action plans and environmental management schemes.
• Climate change, in terms of changed precipitation patterns and rising sea levels, may occur over the next few decades and influence the Mekong River Basin's water quality.

Future monitoring needs
The primary objectives of MRC water quality monitoring are to: • Provide timely data to assure good water quality for the protection of aquatic life and human health.
• Understand the relationships between water quality conditions and the natural landscape, and between hydrological processes and human activities within transboundary areas and across the whole Mekong River Basin.
• Evaluate water quality together with biological parameters and water quantity changes, • Improve water quality risk assessment, information and communication.
• Create joint water quality monitoring and scientific assessments that build trust and support cooperation across the basin.