Unterelbe
Only sub-area in the tidal section of the river Elbe
The sub-area is located in the Lower Elbe and in the landscape of the North German Plain. The river flows in a north-westerly direction with only a low gradient.
The Hamburg port is in a bifurcation area of the Elbe which forms an inland delta. In the past, the tidal backwater lead to a branching of the river in numerous arms and river channels, and islands and sand banks formed. All these river arms join again before the Elbe flows into the North Sea.
The surrounding landscape is characterized by wide and fertile marshes. The only exceptions are several stretches in Hamburg where the northern river banks are formed by the slope of the moraine, the so-called Geesthang.
This sub-area is used to document the contaminant load which the Elbe discharges into the North Sea.
Search data
Sampling site
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Sampling site upstream of the Elbe estuary
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Fourth largest river basin in Central Europe
Specimen
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Common mussel species as invasive animal in rivers and lakes with high information level for water pollution
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Bioindicator in rivers and lakes
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Fine insoluble mineral or organic particles in the water phase
Analytes
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Eighty percent of all elements on earth are metals
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Only eighteen elements in the periodic table
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Organic substances with at least one metall atom
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Group of organic compounds with at least one covalently bonded chlorine atom
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Toxic and persistent organochloropesticide
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Several isomeric compounds among the group of chlorinated hydrocarbons
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Group of organic compounds with at least three condensed six-membered rings
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Chemical agents against harmful organisms and for plant protection
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Organic compounds which are fully (per-) or partially (poly-) fluorinated
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Class of synthetic fragrances
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Class of non-ionic surfactants and their degradation products
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Atoms of one element with different weights
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Flame retardants reduce the flammability of objects
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Cyclic methylsiloxanes with persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic properties in the environment
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Additional information for the interpretation of contamination data
Sampling period
1993 - 2022