Marine Pollution Bulletin 62 (2011) 2220–2229

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Marine Pollution Bulletin

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/marpolbul

Water quality assessment by pollution-index method in the coastal waters of Hebei

Province in western Bohai Sea, China
Shuguang Liu a, Sha Lou a,b, Cuiping Kuang a, Wenrui Huang a,c,⇑, Wujun Chen d, Jianle Zhang d,
Guihui Zhong a
a
Department of Hydraulic Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
b
Department of Civil Engineering, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan
c
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Florida State University, FL, USA
d
Marine Environmental Monitoring Center of Hebei Province, Qinhuangdao, China

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Keywords: Sources of pollution discharges and water quality samples at 27 stations in 2006 in the coastal waters of
Organic Pollution Index Hebei Province, western Bohai Sea, have been analyzed in this study. Pollutant loads from industrial sew-
Eutrophication Index ages have shown stronger impact on the water environment than those from the general sewages. Anal-
COD ysis indicates that pollution of COD is mainly resulted from land-based point pollutant sources. For
Phosphate
phosphate concentration, non-point source pollution from coastal ocean (fishing and harbor areas) plays
Pollution source
Coastal water quality
an important role. To assess the water quality conditions, Organic Pollution Index and Eutrophication
Bohai Sea Index have been used to quantify the level of water pollution and eutrophication conditions. Results
show that pollution was much heavier in the dry season than flood season in 2006. Based on COD and
phosphate concentrations, results show that waters near Shahe River, Douhe River, Yanghe River, and
Luanhe River were heavily polluted. Water quality in the Qinhuangdao area was better than those in
the Tangshan and Cangzhou areas.
Ó 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Bohai Sea, surrounded by land on three sides, is a semi-
closed sea with poor water exchange condition. The Provinces of
Liaoning, Hebei, Shandong and the City of Tianjin embrace it in
the north, west and south. It is a populous and developed area sur-
rounding the Bohai Sea. However, the area has also resulted in a
large amount of pollutants from industrial and municipal waste
water discharged into the Sea. At the same time, many oil fields
and large ports are widely distributed along the coastal areas of
the Bohai Sea. The accidents of oil spills and emissions of drainages
have further exacerbated the pollution of the aquatic environment.
Problems caused by ocean pollution in the coastal waters of the
Hebei Province have ranged from the estuarine zone to the coastal
region such as deterioration of water quality, frequent occurrence
of red tides, imbalance of marine ecosystem, and decline of fisher-
ies resources. Therefore, it is very important to understand and
analyze the pollution sources from both land and coastal water
environments in the Hebei Province for the management of marine
environment and improvement of water quality.
Contaminants such as COD and phosphate have posed a grave
threat to the marine ecology system in coastal waters. Based on
a three-dimensional hydrodynamic and water quality models,
⇑ Corresponding author at: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering,
Florida State University, FL, USA.
E-mail address: whuang@eng.fsu.edu (W. Huang).
Gao et al. (2009) investigated the processes of transport, degrada-
tion and deposition of COD in the Bohai Sea and North Yellow Sea
in different seasons. Through two cruises for water quality investi-
gation in Bohai Sea from August 10 to 18 in 2002 and August 12 to
28 in 2003, Guo et al. (2005) analyzed the effect of COD concentra-
tions to eutrophication. Using three years of monitoring data, Shen
et al. (2004) evaluated the influence of phosphate to the ocean pri-
mary production in Bohai Bay. Based on field surveys conducted in
2003 and 2004, Yang et al. (2007) analyzed the eutrophication con-
dition in coastal waters in Bohai Bay. Wu et al. (2007) included
temperature, dissolved oxygen, salinity, PH, COD and other factors
in an artificial neural network (ANN) model to predict the concen-
trations of chlorophyll and eutrophication in Bohai Bay. Wang et al.
(2009) collected water samples in 120 stations in Bohai Sea to ana-
lyze the distribution of dissolved nutrients and assess the degree of
eutrophication. However, for coastal areas where pollution concen-
trations are usually higher than those in open sea, more intensive
studies on water quality are needed.
In this study, pollutant loads from point sources and water
quality conditions at 27 stations have been investigated in coastal
areas of Hebei Province in the western Bohai Sea. The impact of
pollutant sources and the concentration distribution of COD and
phosphate have been analyzed and discussed. Organic Pollution
Index and Eutrophication Index have been calculated to quantify
the assessment of the water pollution level and water quality

0025-326X/$ - see front matter Ó 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2011.06.021
 S. Liu et al. / Marine Pollution Bulletin 62 (2011) 2220–2229 2221

condition in the dry and flood seasons in 2006. Results would
provide useful technical supports for coastal pollution controls
and environmental management in the study region, and a good
example for similar studies in other coastal environmental
studies.
Field data samplings are important to water quality monitoring
and assessments. Liu and Huang (2009) applied sediment data to
investigate wind-induced sediment transport in Apalachicola Bay.
Mortazavi et al. (2001) investigated nutrient budget based on
nitrogen and nitrite data. Shi (2009, 2010) conducted analyses of
environment in Asia Pacific harbors and sedimentation in estuar-
ies. Chen et al. (2008) studied cadmium transportation under acci-
dent release in Pearl River Delta. Wang et al. (in press) investigated
water exchanges in Jiaozhou Bay. Braga et al. (2000) collected
samples of water in natural channels of Baixada Santista Estuarine
System at 15 stations positioned by GPS to investigate the eutro-
phication caused by industrial and domestic pollution. The distri-
bution of inorganic nutrient and chlorophyll-a concentrations
were determined during 1996–2001 cruises in the Izmir Bay by
Kontas et al. (2004) to assess the level of nitrification and the lim-
iting nutrients in the bay. Samples were collected in June 2006 at
32 stations in Flensburg Fjord of German by Nikulina and Dullo
(2009) to evaluate the eutrophication and heavy metal pollution
levels over the last three decades.
Organic Pollution Index is a comprehensive index that includes
more water quality constituents. It accounts for the multivariate

Fig. 1. Distribution of the sewages in the coastal areas of Hebei Province, China.

Table 1
Classification of pollution categories for sewage outfalls (Marine Environment Monitoring Center of Hebei Province, 2006).

Categories of pollutant Indicators Standard Value

I-class II-class III-class
The second category of pollutants COD (chemical oxygen demand, mg/L) 100 150 500
BOD5 (mg/L) 20 30 300
Phosphate (mg/L) 0.5 1.0 –
Ammonia nitrogen (mg/L) 15 25 –
Suspended matter (mg/L) 70 150 400
Cyanide (mg/L) 0.5 0.5 1.0
Petroleum (mg/L) 5 10 20
Volatile phenol (mg/L) 0.5 0.5 2.0
Fecal coliform (L1) 500 1000 5000
PH 6–9 6–9 6–9
The first category of pollutants Hexavalent chromium (mg/L) 0.5
Mercury (mg/L) 0.05
Plumbum (mg/L) 1.0
Cadmium (mg/L) 0.1
Arsenic (mg/L) 0.5
2222 S. Liu et al. / Marine Pollution Bulletin 62 (2011) 2220–2229

effects of COD, dissolved inorganic nitrogen, dissolved inorganic material. This accumulation of organic material alters the trophic
phosphorus, and dissolved oxygen. Through the comparison with structure (food web) of the water body. Through the treatment of
standard values and combination of several pollutants in the same observed data, Eutrophication Index could demonstrate the associ-
property, non-dimensional index is gained to assess organic matter ated impact of pollutant loads of chemical oxygen demand, dis-
in aquatic environment. Based on its advantage in the assessment solved inorganic nitrogen, and dissolved inorganic phosphorus on
of the level of organic pollution and water quality status, it has water quality. It is much more comprehensive and clear to show
been applied to several coastal and estuarine waters, for examples, the entrophication level than single measured indicator. Costa
Bohai Bay (Zou et al., 1983), Huanghua Port (Liu, 1993), Dalian Bay et al. (1992) developed a Water Quality Eutrophication Index as a
(Yang et al., 2001), Yangtze Delta (Quan et al., 2005), and tool to summarize water quality monitoring data collected in the
Guangzhou Bay (Peng and Jia, 2007). Citizen’s monitoring program in Buzzards Bay, USA (http://
Eutrophication is the over-enrichment of a water body with too www.buzzardsbay.org/eutroindex.htm), which was later adopted
much nutrients, resulting in excessive accumulation of organic by Hillsborough County in Florida to evaluate changes of water

COD
C o n ce n tra tio n (m g /L)

1000

800
600

400
200

Development

Development
Luanhe Oct.

Erluanhe M ay

Shuanglonghe

Shuanglonghe

Shuanglonghe

Douhe Sep.
Tanghe Oct.
Shihe M ay

Shanhaiguan

Shanhaiguan

Shanhaiguan
Shipyard Jul
Douhe M ay

Huangnan
drain Apr.

Zone Oct.
Zone Apr.
M ay.

Sep.
Apr.

Phosphate
C o n ce n tra tio n (m g /L)

Erluanhe Beipaihe Jul. Beipaihe Oct. Canglang Canglang Canglang Jiedijianhe Jiedijianhe Jiedijianhe Laoshibeihe Xinshibeihe Huangnan
May drain May drain Jul. drain Sep. May Jun. Jul. Oct. Jul. drain Sep.

600 Suspended Matter

500
C o n ce n tra tio n (m g /L)

400

300

200

100

0
l.
r.

t.

u l.
l
ay

p
.

ay

t
ay

.
ay

pr .

ay
r
pr

Ju
ay

ji a n
Ju

Oc

un
ay

Ap
Oc

.
Ap

Se
ep

y.
Ap

Ju

l a n Oc t
r
Ju

eJ
eM

Ap
eM

eM
eA

eM

M
a

A
nM

eJ
wa
e

Ji e in S

nM
wa

wa

wa
e

wa
ai h

aih
e

e
e

ai h

i an

i he
nh

in
ai h

eih
nh
ah

in
ai h

ji a
nh

gh

gh

gh

ra i

ji a

ji a

ji a
ra
ip

np

d ra
d ra
ji a

gd
ji a
Sh

ip

hu
q in

ao
l ua

ip

hi b

dra
q in

ip
l on

gd
Be

ao

ao

ao
gd

ao
Be

Na
di
Be

di

Li
Be

an
an
Er

an
Li

Li

Li
Da

ns
Li
Da

ng

lan

Ji e

an
lan

Xu
gn

Da
gn
Xi

gn
Qi

ng
ng

an
an

an
Ca
Ca

Hu
Hu

Hu

Fig. 2. Pollution loads from the general sewages with concentrations exceeding the pollution standard in the corresponding water class.
 S. Liu et al. / Marine Pollution Bulletin 62 (2011) 2220–2229 2223

quality in Tampa Bay. Costa’ index classifies water quality into quality, Organic Pollution Index and Eutrophication Index are
0–35 (for eutrophication condition), 35–65 (fair condition), and adopted to this study for the assessment of water quality in the
65–100 (good to excellent condition). Zhou et al. (1983) developed coastal water of Hebei Province in western Bohai Sea.
an Eutrophication Index method for preliminary assessment of Terrestrial sewages in Hebei Province (Marine Environment
water quality in Bohai Bay, which accounts for the effects of chem- Monitoring Center of Hebei Province, 2006) can be divided into
ical oxygen demand (COD), dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN), and two categories: river outfall and industrial sewage directly dis-
dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP). The Eutrophication Index charged into the sea. There are 28 river outfalls where data are
above or equal to 1 in a water body indicates the eutrophication available (from north to south: Shihe River, Xinkaihe River, Tanghe
condition because of excessive nutrients. Wang et al. (2009) ap- River, Yanghe River, Renzaohe River, Dapuhe River, Luanhe River,
plied the Eutrophication Index as given by Zhou et al. (1983) to ErLuanhe River, Daqinghe River, Erxiedazhuanghe River, Suhe
evaluate the water quality in the open waters of Bohai Sea. Based River, Qinglonghe River, Shuanglonghe River, Shahe River, Douhe
on the their advantages for comprehensive assessment of water River, Beipaihe River, Canglang drainage, Jiedijianhe River,

COD
Concentration (mg/L)

an xi h ct.
gw he .
Su u n.

he .
p u ul .
ng n.

R e o he t.
R e gh e p.

.
R e o he r .

o t.
n g p r.

ct.
ao n .

p u ct.

Su a y
he .

n y ep .
ao p .

n y ay

n y n.
R e o he y

p u ep.
n g Jul

Su Ju l

ny ul
u ep
S u Oc t
a Oc

n y Oc
eix a
p

a
Ya e Ju

n e

nz J u
nz S e

Sa u Ju
O
Da h e J

Sa o u J
gw e M

O
Da e O

Sa u M
Ya e A

nz M

S
Ya e S

nz A

J
Da e S

Sa u S
Ya h e

he
he

Sa i h e

ou
he
R e he
h

h
h

o
h

o
ng

S
a
a

Zh ei
nz
Ya

an
Zh
Concentration (mg/L)

Phosphate
l.

.
t.

l.
p.
ay
r.

r.

ct.
n.

t.
p.
ay
ul
un
Ju

Oc

Ju

Oc
Ap

Ap
Se

Ju

Se
M

O
M
J
e

he

e
e

he

u
e

e
gh
e

e
uh
e
gh
gh

uh

uh

yo
gh

gh

uh

uh
ao

uh
ao
n

ap
n
n

ap

p
z

n
Ya
n

p
p
nz
Ya

en

Da
Ya

Sa
D
Ya

Da
Ya

Da

Da

D
Re

Fig. 3. Pollution loads from the major pollution-emission outlets with concentrations exceeding the pollution standard in the corresponding water class.

Fig. 4. Distribution of 27 stations for water water quality data sampling in coastal area of Hebei Province, Bohai Sea.
2224 S. Liu et al. / Marine Pollution Bulletin 62 (2011) 2220–2229

Laoshibeihe River, Liaojiawa drainage, Xinshibeihe River, Huang-
lang drainage, Nanpaihe River, Huangnan drainage, Liushiliu drain-
age, Dalangdian drainage, Xuanhui drainage and Zhangweixinhe
River). No industry sewage in Cangzhou City is directly discharged
into the sea. Therefore, only four sewages in Qinhuangdao and
Tangshan industries are taken into account: sewage of Shanhai-
guan Development Zone, Shanhaiguan Shipyard, Beidaihe West
treatment plant and Chemical Industry of Sanyou. Among them,
Yanghe River, Renzaohe River, Dapuhe River, Suhe River, Zhang-
weixinhe River and sewage of Chemical Industry of Sanyou are
the major pollutant-emission outlets. Others are the general sew-
ages. The distribution of the sewages is shown in Fig. 1.
Six pollution source surveys were carried out in April, May, June,
July, September and October, 2006. Indicators for major pollutant-
emission outlets are: fecal coliform, COD, BOD5, suspended matter,
phosphate, ammonia nitrogen, petroleum, mercury, arsenic, volatile
phenol, cadmium, plumbum. COD, ammonia nitrogen, phosphate,
hexavalent chromium, cyanide and suspended matter are for other
general sewages.
Index of each individual pollutant parameter is used to assess
the status of the sewage outfall:
Mi
Pi ¼ ð1Þ
Si
Pi: index of pollutant i. if Pi > 1, discharge of pollutant i has exceed
the stipulated standard; Mi: measured concentration of pollutant i
(mg/L); Si: the concentration of stipulated standard of pollutant i
(mg/L).
Concentrations of stipulated standard for evaluation sewage
outfall are shown in Table 1. Defined by local government, the
industry standard has specified the maximal allowable concentra-
tion of the pollution to meet the water quality criteria in different
functional zone.
Pollution loads from the general sewages with concentrations
exceeding the pollution standard in the corresponding water class
in 2006 are given in Fig. 2. The maximum of COD concentrations in
most general sewages was in April. Parts of them occur in May,
June and July. Very few appear in September and October. The

Table 2
Water quality measurement methods for analyzing water samples.

Measurement element Measurement method Measurement instrument Detection limitation

DO Iodimetry Buret 0.042 mg/L
PH PH meter method Portable PH meter
Total nitrogen Potassium persulfate oxidation method 7230G Spectrophotometer 3.78 lmol/L
Total phosphorus Potassium persulfate oxidation method 7230G Spectrophotometer 0.09 lmol/L
Nitrate Spectrophotometer method 7230 Spectrophotometer 0.05 lmol/L
Nitrite Spectrophotometer method 7230 Spectrophotometer 0.02 lmol/L
Ammonium salt Spectrophotometer method 7230 Spectrophotometer 0.03 lmol/L
Active phosphate Spectrophotometer method 7230 Spectrophotometer 0.02 lmol/L
Active silicate Spectrophotometer method 7230 Spectrophotometer 0.45 lmol/L
Dissolved nitrogen Potassium persulfate oxidation method 7230G Spectrophotometer
Dissolved phosphorus Potassium persulfate oxidation method 7230G Spectrophotometer
Suspended matter Gravimetric method Electronic balance BS-1105 2 mg/L
COD Alkaline potassium permanganate method Buret electrothermal board 0.15 mg/L

4450000 4450000

0.11
5.60
0.10
4400000 5.20 4400000
0.09
4.80
4.40 0.08
4.00
4350000 4350000 0.07
3.60
0.06
3.20
2.80 0.05
2.40
4300000 4300000 0.04
2.00
0.03
1.60
1.20 0.02
4250000 0.80 4250000
0.01
0.40
0.00
0.00

4200000 4200000

550000 600000 650000 700000 750000 550000 600000 650000 700000 750000

(a) COD (b) Phosphate

Fig. 5. Concentration contours in flood season (July 21st–27th, 2006): (a) COD and (b) phosphate.
 S. Liu et al. / Marine Pollution Bulletin 62 (2011) 2220–2229 2225

extreme values of ammonia nitrogen concentration in most maximum. The minority appears in September. Cyanide concentra-
general sewages appear in April, May and October. Some occur in tions of most general sewages outfall are maximum in May. Some
June, July and September. In April, May, June, July and October, of them are in June, September and October. Only a few appear in
hexavalent chromium concentrations of some sewages are the July. The maximum of phosphate concentrations are in April, May,

4450000 4450000

0.11
14.40
4400000 4400000 0.10

12.60 0.09

0.08
10.80
4350000 4350000 0.07
9.00
0.06

7.20 0.05
4300000 4300000
5.40 0.04

0.03
3.60
0.02
4250000 4250000
1.80
0.01

0.00 0.00

4200000 4200000

550000 600000 650000 700000 750000 550000 600000 650000 700000 750000

(a) COD (b) Phosphate

Fig. 6. Concentration contours in dry season (November 20th–December 1st, 2006): (a) COD and (b) phosphate.

3 Flood Season Dry Season

0
05

HB 6

HB 7

86

HB 1

HB 0 2

HB 3

HB 4

HB 6
05
HB 52

64

HB 65

ZD 0 76
HB 2

3
1

HB 4

HB 5

HB 6

- B 07

HB 08

ZD 09

HB 11
HB 0
16

HB 4
0

7
0
ZD B Z 0

ZD B Z 0

0
0

0
1
BD

BD

J0

J0
H0

H0

H0
BZ

BZ

BZ

BZ

ZD B Z

BZ

BZ

BZ

BZ

NZ

NZ

NZ

NZ

NZ

NZ
TJ

TJ
H
-T

-T
D
D

D
-B

-B

-B
ZD

(a) Measured COD concentration

0.08
Flood Season Dry Season
0.06

0.04

0.02

0.00
05

HB 6

86
HB 7 7

HB 0 4

HB 0 6
HB 0 1

HB 0 2

HB 0 3

05
HB 52

64

HB 65

ZD 0 76
HB 05

HB 06
HB 02

HB 04

HB 11
HB 10
- B 01

- B 03

- B 07

HB 08
ZD 09

16

HB 4
0

1
BD

BD

J0
J0

BZ
BZ

ZD B Z

BZ

ZD B Z

BZ
BZ

BZ

BZ

BZ

NZ

NZ

NZ

NZ

NZ

NZ
H0
H0

H0

TJ

TJ
H
B

-T

-T
D

D
-B
ZD

ZD

(b) Measured phosphate concentration

Fig. 7. Comparison of measured concentration in flood and dry seasons, 2006: (a) measured COD concentration and (b) measured phosphate concentration.
2226 S. Liu et al. / Marine Pollution Bulletin 62 (2011) 2220–2229

Table 3
Water quality classification by Organic Pollution Index and Eutrophication Index.

Organic Pollution Index: A Eutrophication Index: E

<0 0–1 1–2 2–3 3–4 >4 E>1
Water Quality Classification Excellent Good Begin to be contaminated Lightly polluted Moderately polluted Heavily polluted Eutrophication

July and October. A very small number appear in the June and Pollution loads from the major pollution-emission outlets with
September. The high concentrations of suspended matter in most concentrations exceeding the pollution standard in the corre-
general sewages occur in April, May and June. Among the general sponding water class in 2006 are given in Fig. 3. The highest con-
sewages, the main pollutants are COD, phosphate and suspended centrations of fecal coliform in most major pollutant-emission
matter. outlets are in July. Very few of them appear in April, June, Septem-
ber and October. The maximum of concentration of BOD5 in most
Table 4 major pollutant-emission outlets are in April and May. Some ap-
Results of Pollution Index A and E in flood and dry seasons, 2006. pear in June. The maximum concentrations of petroleum in most
outlets are in May and September. The concentrations of mercury
Stations Organic Pollution Index: A Eutrophication Index: E
in most outlets are maximal in July and for few outlets it appears
Flood season Dry season Flood season Dry season
in September and October. In most major pollutant-emission out-
ZD-BDH052 0.10 3.09 0.22 2.71 lets, maximum concentrations of arsenic occur in July and October.
HBBZ02 0.07 2.05 0.17 1.20 Volatile phenol concentration of most major pollutant-emission
HBBZ01 0.44 2.78 0.13 2.53
ZD-BDH064 0.00 3.70 0.17 4.13
outlets is highest in May and July, and small amounts appear in
BD05 0.04 4.17 0.00 5.64 April. The maximum cadmium concentrations occur in June and
BD06 0.39 1.56 0.00 0.79 September. Only minority appear in May. In most outlets, plum-
HBBZ03 0.77 3.49 0.00 3.32 bum concentrations are high in July, and low in April and October.
ZD-BDH065 0.64 4.39 0.00 4.89
The pollutants discharged by major pollutant-emission outlets are
HBBZ04 0.46 4.77 0.18 5.93
HBBZ05 0.38 4.11 0.16 4.50 more serious to the ocean environment than the general sewages
HBBZ06 0.20 2.24 0.16 1.55 both in the amount and extent of pollution indexes.
HBBZ07 0.12 3.24 0.23 2.94 Seawater quality data sampling was conducted by National
ZD-BDH076 0.20 5.29 0.15 7.33 Marine Environmental Monitoring Center from July 21st to 27th
ZD-TJ077 2.96 3.36 0.18 3.48
HBBZ08 0.45 3.14 0.55 3.10
and November 20th to December 1st in 2006 (National Marine
HBBZ09 1.88 3.33 1.99 3.64 Environmental Monitoring Center, 2009). Major water quality con-
ZD-TJ086 1.26 4.51 2.08 5.95 stituents include water temperature, salinity, DO, PH, COD, total
TJ16 1.16 4.79 2.92 7.80 nitrogen, phosphorus, reactive silicate, dissolved nitrogen, sus-
TJ14 1.11 3.42 2.08 4.72
pended matter, total organic carbon and other chemical indicators.
HBBZ10 0.92 2.91 2.69 2.98
HBBZ11 3.51 3.75 10.60 4.93 The 27 stations in the coastal area of the Hebei Province are shown
HBNZ01 5.36 1.07 9.00 0.86 in Fig. 4. For the water quality constituents described in this paper,
HBNZ02 1.08 0.89 3.69 0.63 high fluon water sampler was used as the sampling tool to take
HBNZ03 3.64 6.20 1.51 14.39 samples in the field experiments. For sampling DO and COD, glass
HBNZ04 0.79 3.86 2.37 5.25
HBNZ06 0.21 2.02 0.94 2.12
bottles were used. For other water quality samples, polyethylene
HBNZ05 4.38 6.37 4.95 16.72 bottles were used. Descriptions of measuring methods on water
samples are given in Table 2.

7 A-Flood Season A-Dry Season

5
3
1
-1
16
H J1 4
H Z10
H Z11
ZD BB 6
D 7

H Z08

-T 9
H Z02

D 1

D 3

H Z04
H Z05

86
BD 4

H 065

-T 6
H 077
BB 5 2

H Z06

5
H Z01
H Z02
H Z03
H Z04
BD 5
H 06

ZD BZ0
-B Z0

-B Z0

H Z0
-B Z0
06

ZD H07

Z0
0

J0
0

TJ
T
H

H
H

BB
BB
BB
ZD BB

ZD BB

BB
BB
BB

BN
BN
BN
BN
BN
BN
D

B
-B
H
ZD

Qinhuangdao Waters Tanshang Waters Tianjin Waters Cangzhou Waters

E-Flood Season E-Dry Season

16
H J1 4
H Z10
H Z08

-T 9

BN 1
H Z05

ZD BB 6
D 7
-T 6
D 3
H 065
H Z04

H 077

86
H 052

ZD BB 2
D 1

BD 4

H Z01
H Z02
H Z03
H Z04

5
H Z06
B 5
ZD BB 6

ZD BZ0

H Z1
H Z0
-B Z0
ZD H07
-B Z0
H Z0
-B Z0
06

Z0
0
H D0

J0
TJ
T
H

J
H

BB

BB
BB
BB
BB
BB
BB

BN
BN
BN
BN
BN
D

B
-B
ZD

Qinhuangdao Waters Tanshang Waters Tianjin Waters Cangzhou Waters

Fig. 8. Comparison of organic pollution and eutrophication indexes in flood and dry seasons, 2006.
 S. Liu et al. / Marine Pollution Bulletin 62 (2011) 2220–2229
Fig. 5 has shown the vertical averaged concentration contours
of COD and phosphate in coastal waters of the Hebei Province in
the flood season (July 21st–27th, 2006). It points out that the con-
centration of COD is the highest near the mouth of the Shahe River
and Douhe River with the value of 4.4–5.2 mg/L. Estuaries of the
Yanghe River and Luanhe River are also heavily polluted with the
COD concentrations of 2.8–3.6 mg/L and 2.4–3.2 mg/L. COD con-
centrations in other waters are lower than 2 mg/L. Waters near
the mouth of the Shahe River and Douhe River have the highest
phosphate concentration of 0.035–0.04 mg/L. Caofeidian waters is
the secondary polluted area in phosphate concentration of 0.02–
0.03 mg/L. Concentrations in other waters are relatively low. Phos-
phate concentration is higher in part of open sea than coastal
waters. This indicates that the sources of phosphate are not only
resulted from terrestrial sewages but also from the fishing and har-
bor areas in open sea.
Fig. 6 is about the vertical averaged concentration contours of
COD and phosphate in coastal waters of Hebei Province in the
dry season (November 20th–December 1st, 2006). It presents that
the concentration of COD is the highest near the mouth of the
Shahe River and Douhe River with the value of 14 mg/L. The high
concentration of COD results from excessive discharge of the
Sanyou Chemical Industry. Near the Estuaries of the Luanhe River,
there are also heavily polluted waters with COD concentrations of
6–8 mg/L. COD concentrations in other waters are lower than
2 mg/L. Waters near the mouth of the Shahe River and Douhe River
have the highest phosphate concentration of 0.09 mg/L which is
also caused by excessive discharge of the Sanyou Chemical Indus-
try. Phosphate concentrations in Qinhuangdao and Tangshan
waters are on the high side with the value of 0.04 mg/L. Phosphate
concentration is higher in the open sea of Caofeidian and Huang-
hua Harbour than in the coastal area.
Fig. 7 presents the comparison of pollutant concentration in
flood and dry season. It shows that the COD concentration is higher
in the dry season than that in the flood season near Qinhuangdao
waters, which is contrary to the situation near Tangshan and Cangz-
hou waters. Phosphate concentration is higher in the dry season in
most stations. Pollutant concentration is closely related to the flow
rate of the runoff. In most of the waters, pollutant concentration de-
creases with the increasing flow rate in flood season. But in some
other waters, flow of runoff carries more pollutants in flood season,
which leads to higher pollutant concentrations in the receiving
Table 5
Water quality conditions based on the assessment by using Organic Pollution Index and Eutrophication Index in the coastal water of Hebei Province, Bohai Sea.
Water quality zone Judged by Organic Polluted level (III–VI are polluted water)
I (%) II (%) III (%) IV (%) V (%)
Flood Season 33.33 29.63 18.52 3.70 7.41
Flood season 0.00 3.70 7.41 18.52 37.04
Fig. 9. Polluted coastal areas assessed by using Organic Pollution Index and Eutrophication Index in the coastal water of Hebei Province, Bohai Sea. The percentage of polluted
areas was approximately estimated by the percentage of stations.
2227
waters. For most of the rivers in North China, the flow rate in flood
season and dry season varies significantly. Taking the Luanhe River
in 2006 as an example, the average flow rate in flood season is
64.21 m3/s, while in dry season only 11.49 m3/s.
In order to account for the effects of multiple water quality
constituents on coastal waters of Hebei Province, index methods
as described above are used for water quality assessment in Bohai
Sea. Referring to Quan et al. (2005) and Wang et al. (2009), Organic
Pollution Index and Eutrophication Index given below have been
adopted.
(1) Organic Pollution Index A is defined by:
COD DIN DIP DO
A¼ þ þ  ð2Þ
CODs DINs DIPs DOs
where COD is chemical oxygen demand; DIN is dissolved
inorganic nitrogen; DIP is the dissolved inorganic phospho-
rus; DO is dissolved oxygen; CODS, DINS, DIPS and DOS are
the standard concentrations as defined in Sea Water Quality
Standard of China, GB 3097-1997 (State Bureau of Environ-
mental Protection, 1998).
(2) Eutrophication Index E is defined by:
COD  DIN  DIP
E¼  106 ð3Þ
4500
In order to make the conservative estimation, I-class standard
in Sea Water Quality Standard of China is adopted: CODs =
2 mg/L, DINs = 0.2 mg/L, DIPs = 0.015 mg/L and DOs = 6 mg/L.
As shown in Eq. (2), the Organic Pollution Index comprehen-
sively account for the effects of COD, DIN, and DIP on water quality.
Similarly, Eutrophication Index as shown in Eq. (3) indicates the
multiple effects of COD, DIN, and DIP on eutrophication. Based
on the previous research done by Quan et al. (2005), If A < 0, the
water quality is classified as excellent; if 0 6 A < 1, it is good; If
1 < A < 2, water is beginning to be contaminated; If 2 < A < 3, it is
lightly polluted; If 3 < A < 4, it is moderately polluted; If A > 4, it
is heavily polluted waters. For Eutrophication Index, if E > 1, the
water is in eutrophication situation. Higher E value indicates
heavier eutrophication (as shown in Table 3). According to the
measured data, DIN is substituted by the concentration of
Organic Polluted stations, % Eutrophication stations, %
VI (%)
7.41 37.04 40.74
33.33 96.03 88.89
2228 S. Liu et al. / Marine Pollution Bulletin 62 (2011) 2220–2229

dissolved nitrogen, and DIP is substituted by the concentration of
Phosphate during the calculation.
The results of Organic Pollution Index and Eutrophication Index
in 27 stations are shown in Table 4 and Fig. 8. Organic Pollution
Index A and Eutrophication Index E indicate that both organic pol-
lution and eutrophication degree are much heavier in Tianjin and
Cangzhou waters than that in Qinhuangdao and Tanshan waters
in flood season. While in dry season the special distribution is
not evident, because most of the waters are polluted. Table 5 and
Fig. 9 present the statistics of polluted coastal waters based on
the pollution index. Results are based on the analysis of measured
data in 27 stations which are almost evenly distributed in the
coastal areas. Therefore, they can stand for the water quality status
in the coastal waters to some degree. They present that, in flood
season, 3.70% of the stations in coastal area is lightly polluted by
organic pollution. Moderately and heavily polluted stations are in

4450000 4450000

4400000 6.5 4400000 6.5

5.5 5.0

4.5 4.0
4350000 4350000
3.5 3.5

2.5 2.5

4300000 1.5 4300000 1.5

0.5 1.0

0.0 0.5
4250000 4250000
-0.5 0.0

-1.0 -1.0

4200000 4200000

550000 600000 650000 700000 750000 550000 600000 650000 700000 750000

(a) Organic Index in flood season (b) Organic Index in dry season

4450000 4450000

16.0
4400000 4400000 16.0

12.0
14.0

10.0 10.0
4350000 4350000
7.0 6.0

4.0
4.0

3.0
4300000 4300000
2.0
2.0
1.0
1.0
4250000 0.0 4250000
0.0

-1.0 -1.0

4200000 4200000

550000 600000 650000 700000 750000 550000 600000 650000 700000 750000

(c) Eutrophication Index in flood season (d) Eutrophication Index in dry season
Fig. 10. Spatial distributions of Organic Index and Eutrophication Index in flood and dry season of 2006: (a) Organic Index in flood season, (b) Organic Index in dry season, (c)
Eutrophication Index in flood season and (d) Eutrophication Index in dry season.
 S. Liu et al. / Marine Pollution Bulletin 62 (2011) 2220–2229
the same percent 7.41%. And eutrophication station is in the pro-
portion of 40.74%. It is obviously that the water quality is much
worse in the dry season with 18.52% lightly polluted, 37.04% mod-
erately polluted, 33.33% heavily polluted by organic pollution and
88.89% eutrophication station. Serious and widespread pollution is
more likely to happen in dry season than flood season. The charac-
teristic of temporal distribution is the same as that of pollutant
source. There is a positive correlation between Organic Pollution
Index A and Eutrophication Index E.
Spatial distributions of Organic Index and Eutrophication Index
in flood and dry season of 2006 are clearly explicated (in Fig. 10).
High level of organic pollution is shown in Qinhuangdao waters
(only stations BD05), Tangshan waters and Huanghua harbor waters.
The eutrophication is much more serious in Qinhuangdao waters
(only stations BD05), Tangshan waters (only station ZD-BDH076),
Tianjin waters (only station HBBZ11), and Huanghua Harbour
waters. Results indicate that Tangshan waters and Huanghua Harbor
waters are heavily polluted, which agrees with the measured data.
Through comparison and analysis in this study, Organic Pollu-
tion Index and Eutrophication Index were comprehensively used
to assess water quality of the Bohai Sea. The result has shown that
they can be used to reasonably quantify the level of temporal and
spatial pollution in the coastal waters. It also shows that the
Organic Pollution Index and Eutrophication Index are good repre-
sentative indicators for water quality evaluation, which may be
applied to other coastal areas for pollution assessment.
The pollution index method has been used to assess water qual-
ity in the coastal waters in Hebei Province, China. Characteristics of
water quality conditions are given below.
(1) Pollutant loads from major pollutant-emission outlets of
industrial sewages are more serious to the water environ-
ment than those from the general sewages. High concentra-
tion waters occur near the Shahe River, Douhe River, Yanghe
River and Luanhe River on the aspect of COD and phosphate
distribution.
(2) Pollution of COD is mainly resulted from point pollutant
sources at land, such as outfalls of river and sewage of indus-
try directly discharged into the sea. For phosphate concen-
tration, non-point source pollution from coastal ocean
(fishing and harbor areas) is an indispensable source.
(3) The water quality condition is better in the Qinhuangdao
water area than that in Tangshan and Cangzhou in 2006.
In general, the pollution level is much higher in the dry sea-
son than in the flood season.
(4) At present, controlling pollutant emission should be carried
out based on the marine environment capacity. Especially,
more attentions should be paid to the dispersion and distri-
bution of pollutant under the typical hydrological conditions
in the dry season.
This study indicates that the pollution index method can be
used as a useful and effective tool for the assessment of water qual-
ity in coastal environment. The case study presented in this paper
may provide a good reference for coastal water quality assessment
in other study sites.
Acknowledgements
This study was supported by Projects of the Integrated Coastal
Investigation and Assessment of Hebei Province (908-SJ-HB-02-
2229
04 and 908-SJ-HB-02-10). The authors appreciate the supports
given by research collaborators in Marine Environment Monitoring
Center of Hebei Province and National Marine Environmental
Monitoring Center. The study was also partly supported by
grants from the National Science Foundation of China (NSFC
50979071), and The National Keynote Research Program of China
(2006BAJ27B04, 2008BAJ08B14, and 2007FY110300-03). Finally,
the support from Guanghua Fund for the College of Civil Engineer-
ing of Tongji University has enabled the effective dissemination of
this research.
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