About Musux

Conductivity, or conductance, is the ability of water to conduct electrical currents, which is commonly measured in microsiemens (µS) divided by centimeter (cm). It can also be measured in millisiemens (mS), which is equivalent to 1000 µS. The conductivity of water is directly related to the amount of total dissolved solids, which are mostly mineral salts.

Why is it important to know the conductivity of water in a wetland?

Water conductivity provides valuable information about the type of basin in which the water bodies sampled are located, due to the processes of surface runoff caused by precipitation, which allows the deposition of mineral salts from the basin soils to rivers or lagoons. Therefore, basins with little mineralization present washes with few salts, which means that the freshwater bodies in the area will have low conductivity < 1500 uS/cm. The opposite occurs in sedimentary basins. In addition, there may be saline input from the sea which generates water conditions Subsaline > 1500 and below 5000 uS/cm, Hyposaline > 5000 to 35,000 uS/cm, and mesosaline above this value.

Dissolved oxygen (DO) is the amount of gaseous oxygen that is dissolved in water (ADECUA, 2008) and is required for respiration and decomposition of organic matter. Oxygen is an essential element for all forms of aquatic life in natural waters. Its concentration in water varies with temperature, salinity, turbulence, photosynthetic activity of algae and plants, and atmospheric pressure (meters above sea level), where 5.0 mg/L is the minimum amount required, which comes mostly from the atmosphere.

Why is it important to know the dissolved oxygen in water?

Without dissolved oxygen there is no life and its lack will indicate species mortality, and therefore the loss of biodiversity of a wetland due to lack of food. It is the most relevant element in the degradation of organic matter and pollution. A characteristic of its absence is the presence of bad odors.

The pH is a measure of the degree of acidity and alkalinity of water and, in general, of a solution. Its values follow a scale ranging from 0 to 14 (i.e., from very acidic to very alkaline), where pH 7 represents a neutral condition. Thus, the pH index indicates degrees of acidity, which ultimately means the relative amount of hydrogen ions in the water.

Why is it important to know the pH of water in a wetland?

pH is an important variable in the monitoring and evaluation of water quality, as it influences many biological and chemical processes within a water body, as well as all processes associated with water supply and treatment. The pH of most natural waters is between the range of 6.0 and 8.5. At these levels most aquatic life, whether plant or animal, thrives. The lowest values (acidic) are found in dilute waters with high organic matter content while the highest values (alkaline) occur in eutrophic waters or in saline lakes.

Temperature is an intrinsic physical variable of water bodies deeply subjected to solar radiation and climatic fluctuations of the atmosphere and thus to the reaction rate of chemical and biological processes in the water body.

Temperature variations in a body of water occur seasonally (summer to winter), during the day (morning to evening) and in the water column as such, because the surface part will tend to have a higher temperature than the deep part.

Its influence on biological processes is related to the metabolic rate of aquatic organisms, such as cellular respiration and photosynthesis.