AQUIMAR Estuaries Project

The last water sampling campaign, framed in the AQUIMAR_Clothing project, took place on March 23 and 24. The campaign took place at the Formosa and the Mira River, involving employees of the Division of Chemistry and Pollution of the Marine Environment and the Centro de Ciências do Mar e do Ambiente of the University of Lisbon (MARE/FCUL).

The water samples were taken with Niskin bottle at 12 stations of the Formosa Ria and at 7 stations on the Mira River. Positioning was performed and recorded in WGS84 coordinates in real time by GPS equipment.

Measurements in-situ were performed to determine classical physicochemical parameters, namely pH, temperature and dissolved oxygen. The collected water samples were filtered for further laboratory analysis of nutrients, photosynthetic pigments and heavy metals. Samples were also taken to determine turbidity and biological parameters to be performed at the MARE/FCUL. In three sampling stations in the Formosa river and in the Mira river, microplastics were harvested. The mission went according to plan and the proposed objectives were achieved.