In 1998 a permanent plot (50 x 50 m) was established on the slope of the Nosal Mountain at the height of 970 m asl in 120 year old spruce stand, where in the 120-year-old spruce stand bulk deposition, throughfall and soil solution are collected. The investigations of health status of trees and floral characteristic have been carried out since 2001. The analyses are carried out in a certified laboratory of the Institute for Ecology of Industrial Areas, Katowice (Certificate No AB 325). The basic meteo data are taken from the monitoring station located at Kuźnice (about 1 kn from the plot).

UK ECN site. The River Lathkill is located in the Peak District National Park and is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The site is part of a the Peak District Dales SAC under the Habitats Directive. It is the only river in Britain which rises in, as well as flows through limestone for its entire length. The upper parts are a winterbourne, and in summer the stream issues from bubble springs lower down the valley. Downstream there are alternately moderately flowing gravelly sections and silted pools, some formed by natural tufa dams, others artificially. In the pools there are abundant submerged plants including species of Veronica, Ranunculus, Potamogeton and Callitriche, while faster sections are carpeted with bryophytes, some of which are nationally rare (eg. Cratoneuron commutatum). There are no direct discharges to the river. There are two licensed abstractions for fish rearing purposes and there are concerns over low flows which may affect water quality and the biota.

UK ECN site. The River Coquet rises at Coquet Head on the Scottish border and flows generally eastward, draining the southern flanks of the Cheviot Hills, finally discharging to the North Sea at Amble. The Warkworth Dam marks the tidal limit. The River Coquet is an excellent, clean river system of high conservation and ecological value. The river is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Bankside habitats range from woodland fringed lower river and wooded lowlands through the hay meadows, herb rich valleys and gravel haughs of lower Coquetdale to the upper moorlands of the Cheviots. This relatively undisturbed environment provides excellent habitats for wildlife including a number of protected species. The principal habitats protected are hay meadows, woodland and the estuary. The main river supports a healthy and diverse invertebrate fauna of mayflies, stoneflies, caddis flies and other taxa which are sensitive to pollution. Their presence indicates the absence of chronic pollution and the in-stream biology is generally of excellent quality. The ECN site on the Coquet is at Warkworth, Grid Reference NU 236 050, approximately 2 kilometres upstream of the tidal limit.

UK ECN site. The River Frome is essentially a rural catchment of high amenity and ecological value. The upper part of the catchment lies within the Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is characterised by steep-sided valleys. The only large urban area within the catchment is Dorchester (population 15,104). In the upper reaches the river is dependent on springs and groundwater levels for flows. Many of the steams are Winterbournes and the streams cease to flow in the Summer or are perched where the River goes underground for part of its length. All stretches of river above Holme Bridge fit into the Environment Agency's River Objective classes 1 & 2. These classes describe water of very good, or good quality suitable for all fish species. The majority of the catchment fits into the Environment Agency's Biological Classification class A. Land use in the catchment is typically permanent grassland with dairying or stock rearing, with some cereals and natural wetland habitats. The majority of the upper reaches lies on chalk which produces the high groundwater component of flow. The lower reaches are dominated by sands, gravels and clays. Rainfall in the catchment varies between 850-1100 mm a year. The Q95 is 34% of the mean annual flow reflecting how much of the flow depends on groundwater and how slowly the River responds to rainfall events.

The Northeast US Shelf (NES) ecosystem spans the Middle Atlantic Bight and Gulf of Maine, is a large portion of the NW Atlantic Shelves Province, and is in a coastal biome. The waters over the NES provide an array of ecosystem services including fishing, energy development, shipping, waste disposal, recreation, and conservation. The NES ecosystem, like other productive temperate shelf ecosystems, is characterized by strong seasonality along with high levels of variability in physical forcing at timescales from days to decades, including climate impacts.

UK ECN site. The River Lambourn rises near the village of Lambourn in the chalk of the the Berkshire Downs at an altitude of about 152m AOD. It is 26km long and flows through the Kennet Valley in a south-easterly direction to Newbury where it joins the River Kennet at an altitude of about 85m AOD. There is one important tributary, the Winterbourne Stream, which flows into the Lambourn from the north-east, just upstream of Newbury. The sampling site is located at Bagnor in the town of Newbury (population: c. 35,000) at an altitude of about 80m AOD, about 5km above the confluence with the Kennet. The underlying bedrock is chalk, with overlying river gravels. The catchment is mostly rural, with mixed farming as the main industry, and there are extensive decidous woodlands on the catchment boundary. The river forms part of the proposed Kennet and Lambourn floodplain Special Area of Conservation (SAC) under the European Community Habitats Directive. Most of the river is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Ten kilometres from the source, the river receives input from East Shefford sewage works. There are no other significant inputs upstream of the sampling site and no large conurbations on the catchment above the site. Water quality in the Lambourn is good; the river is classified as General Quality Assessment (GQA) biological class 'b' and chemical class 'A'. The river corridor is notable for reed beds and willow stands and the floodplain provides important feeding grounds for snipe (Gallionago gallionago) and water rail (Rallus aquaticus). There are good extensive gravel spawning areas for salmonids; the river supports one of the best and most productive fisheries for brown trout (Salmo trutta) in the area, with natural populations of grayling (Thymallus thymallus) also present. The Lambourn is in the top 10% for England and Wales for the number of macroinvertebrate families recorded during the GQA survey; five nationally rare species of invertebrates are found associated with the river. Native crayfish (Austropotamobius pallipes) have not been recorded in the catchment in recent years, although they are present in the Kennet downstream. Populations of the introduced American signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus) are present.

UK ECN site. Located to the north of Lower Lough Erne in County Fermanagh, the Garvary River has its source in the outflows from Loughs Vearty and Tullyasiddagh. It flows in a general south-easterly direction, augmented by the Crossowen River and the outflow from Lough Scolban, and eventually discharges to Lower Lough Erne. Approximately 7 km long, the river has a catchment area of 35.5km2 of which around 5% is lake surface. At the ECN site, the river is 2.5-3 metres wide and 30cm deep with a few holding pools around 60cm deep. The drift geology of the catchment consists mainly of peat and bedrock at or near the surface which some glacial till and small amounts of sand and gravel. The solid geology has been identified as mainly mica schist of the Moinian period. In its upper reaches, the river flows though moorland and peat bog. Soils in the catchment are peats and gleys with poor drainage capacity, supporting a vegetation cover of rough pasture, bracken and heather. The upper part of the catchment supports low intensity sheep grazing, while downstream the land use is predominantly improved grassland. Although the Garvary River has not been designated under the Freshwater Fish Directive it has excellent water quality both chemically and biologically, and it is a very important nursery area with high densities of juvenile trout and salmon. Its banks have many trees (mainly alder, willow and hazel) which provide adequate shading for the juvenile fish. The river is not suitable for angling and does not have stocks of takable fish. Wildlife found in the river corridor include mallard duck and dragonflies.

UK ECN site. The river rises south of Kirkby Stephen on the Cumbria/Yorkshire border and flows northwards to Carlisle before discharging to the Solway Firth. The eastern part of the catchment is drained by short, relatively steep streams from the Pennines; the western part includes tributaries of the Eamont system which arise in the eastern hills of the Lake District, and the major lakes, Ullswater and Haweswater. The catchment is largely rural, with farming the main industry. There are significant settlements on the upper part of the river at Kirkby Stephen and Appleby-in-Westmorland. Water quality in the upper reaches is classified as good and drinking water is abstracted to supply the city of Carlisle. The river is excellent for salmon (Salmo salar) fishing and also supports a sea trout (Salmo trutta) run. Many other species of fish are also found, eg brown trout (Salmo trutta fario), grayling (Thymallus thymallus), chub (Leuciscus cephalus), dace (Leuciscus leuciscus, eel, minnow (Phoxinus phoxinus), loach (Barbatula barbatula), river lamprey (Lampetra fluviatilis), sea lamprey (Petromygon marinus), and brook lamprey (Lampetra planeri), stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) and bullhead (Cottus gobio). Otters and native crayfish (Austropotamobius pallipes) are also found in the Eden catchment. The Eden at Temple Sowerby is within the "River Eden and Tributaries" SSSI, and is Special Area of Conservation (SAC) under the EC Habitats and Species Directive. The sampling site is in an upland farming area at an altitude of about 100 m AOD. The surrounding countryside is hilly, with some woodlands, rising to the bare slopes of the Pennine hills to the east. These have been mined for lead and silver in historic times, and gypsum is still extracted. The underlying bedrock is Permo-Triassic Penrith Sandstone, with smaller tributaries of the Eden draining from the surrounding Carboniferous Limestone. The market town of Appleby, with a population of about 3000, is roughly 14 km away by road. Its primary influence on the river is the discharge from the Sewage Treatment Works 16 km upstream, which currently has secondary treatment and, since January 1999, phosphorus stripping of the wastewaters it receives. The ECN site is at the Eden Bridge in Temple Sowerby, at NGR 3604 5282, where the A66 trunk road crosses the river.

UK ECN site. This site at Thorverton weir on the River Exe drains the Exmoor National Park and is situated above the City of Exeter and the more industrialised sub-catchment of the River Culm. Most of the catchment is populated by isolated farmsteads, hamlets, villages and small towns. The only major urban area upstream of this site is Tiverton. The River Exe rises at a level of 450 m AOD in the wet moorland of Exmoor, then passes through steep-sided valleys with extensive broad-leaved woodland. Further east, tributaries run off the Brendon Hills with the River Haddeo drained to form the major water resource of Wimbleball Reservoir. Further south of these tributaries down towards Tiverton the floodplain opens out and rolling farmland replaces woodland. The farmland in the catchment of Thorverton weir includes sheep, cattle and dairy farming. All stretches of river above Thorverton weir, except the Riverton canal, fit into the Environment Agency's River Objective classes 1 & 2 which describe water of very good, or good quality suitable for all fish species. The majority of the Thorverton weir catchment fits into the Environment Agency's Biological Classification class A. The average rainfall for the Exe catchment as a whole 1097 mm, with a maximum of 2018 mm on Exmoor. Analysis of the flow record at Thorverton shows a mean daily flow of 15.887 cumecs with a Q95 that is 12% of the mean daily flow which indicates a relatively 'flashy' flow regime compared to the rest of England.

UK ECN site. The River Spey rises in the high ground of the Grampian Mountains and flows in a north easterly direction towards the Moray Firth. It drains a relatively large catchment of 3008 km2 with a stream network of 36400 km, of which the main river comprises 157km. The upper part of the catchment is characterised by its mountain wilderness regions, sheep farming and tourism, whilst in the lower catchment these are complemented by the distilling industry, cattle and arable farming and related industries. There is restricted commercial forestry on the narrow valley bottoms and steep sided hills of the upper catchment, but as the valley floor widens it becomes much more extensive (16% of total catchment land use). Most of the Spey Catchment is underlain by metamorphic rocks of the Cambrian Period and these are intruded at a number of places by granite plutons and are overlain at the northern end of the catchment by Devonian sandstone. For most of its length the River Spey flows through a wide alluvial plain composed of silts, sand and waterborne pebbles. The catchment is of great conservation value with 27 designated Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) including various woodland, wetland and montane habitats, fossil sites, and various geomorphological features. The river itself is designated an SSSI at the Insh Marshes, at the lower section downstream of Fochabers for its unique active braided channel and associated habitats, and at Spey Bay which is of prime importance in the field of coastal geomorphology. The River Spey is renowned for its salmon fishing, commercially important to the local economy. The salmon fishery is the subject of much research and fisheries management activity.