Variation in Dissolved Organic Matter Using Absorbance and Fluorescence Measurements during Dry Season in Sta. Rosa and Cabuyao Rivers, Philippines

Abstract

Santa Rosa watershed, where the Santa Rosa River and Cabuyao River are located, is growing with increasing urbanization and commercialization in their surroundings. Water quality monitoring is an important tool in understanding the possible impacts of domestic, industrial, and commercial discharges, and agricultural run-off on river systems and their tributaries. With the integration of absorbance and fluorescence measurements, we can further examine the effects of land use and climate change on dissolved organic matter (DOM) sources found in river systems. In this study, these two rivers exhibit poor quality with varying values in each sampling station and period. DOM sources change from terrestrial to endogenous sources within the sampling period. High aromaticity and molecular size were observed in all downstream sampling stations. This is supported by the high values of humic-like substances. Fluorescence index values showed temporal changes from terrestrial to endogenous DOM sources from November 2019 to February 2020. This is also confirmed by the increasing trend in the biological index. The variation in all sampling stations can be attributed to varying land use, hydrological, and climatological changes such as typhoon Tisoy, and Taal Volcano eruption observed during the sampling period.