Ambient Water Quality Criteria for Dissolved Oxygen

Water Quality

1.0 Introduction

Oxygen is the single most important component of surface water for self-purification processes and the maintenance of aquatic organisms which utilize aerobic respiration. This document is largely biased towards the effects of minimum oxygen levels on aquatic life, as dissolved oxygen has relatively little or no consequence for other water uses. Categories of water uses given cursory consideration include drinking water, recreation and aesthetics, and industry. A discussion of dissolved oxygen in the context of criteria (acceptable levels for specifies uses) is anomalous relative to most other water quality variables in that critical oxygen levels are expressed as minimum rather than maximum values. An exception is required for industry because of the corrosive properties of oxygen.

Dissolved oxygen standards and criteria from other agencies and jurisdictions are reviewed along with information available from the literature. The objective or the review was to incorporate the most applicable information which could be used to formulate defensible criteria to protect aquatic life in British Columbia waters. Criteria for other water uses have not been proposed.


	Water Quality Ambient Water Quality Criteria for Dissolved Oxygen 1.0 Introduction Oxygen is the single most important component of surface water for self-purification processes and the maintenance of aquatic organisms which utilize aerobic respiration. This document is largely biased towards the effects of minimum oxygen levels on aquatic life, as dissolved oxygen has relatively little or no consequence for other water uses. Categories of water uses given cursory consideration include drinking water, recreation and aesthetics, and industry. A discussion of dissolved oxygen in the context of criteria (acceptable levels for specifies uses) is anomalous relative to most other water quality variables in that critical oxygen levels are expressed as minimum rather than maximum values. An exception is required for industry because of the corrosive properties of oxygen. Dissolved oxygen standards and criteria from other agencies and jurisdictions are reviewed along with information available from the literature. The objective or the review was to incorporate the most applicable information which could be used to formulate defensible criteria to protect aquatic life in British Columbia waters. Criteria for other water uses have not been proposed.