How chemometrics can helpfully assist in evaluating environmental data. Lagoon water

The seasonal dependence of inorganic anion composition of Venice lagoon water was investigated along the period June–November 1993. Monthly samples were collected in three different stations and nitrite, nitrate, iodide, bromide, chloride, sulfate, phosphate and silicate content was determined. Dissolved oxygen, temperature and conductivity were measured in situ. Unfortunately, in that period the weather behaved very atypically as concerns both rains and temperature and the raw data obtained for the variables considered do not allow direct correlations with the season. Only the chemometric treatment of principal component analysis permitted to characterize the samples as a function of seasonality and sampling site and allowed to select the significant discriminating factors.