Sedell, J. R.; Dahm, C. N. 1990. Spatial and temporal scales of dissolved organic carbon in streams and rivers. In: Organic acids in aquatic ecosystems: Dahlem workshop report 1990. New York: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.: 261-279p.
Regional variation in riverine ecosystem dissolved organic carbon(DOC) concentration generally ranges from 0.5-40 mg Cll. Downstreamconcentrations of DOC within a catchment show no predictable general trends.Where anthropogeiic activity increases as a river becomes larger, a generalincrease in DOC is apparent. !n less disturbed river basins there does notappear to he a strong link between stream size and DOC concentration. Theamount of swamps and wetlands within a basin strongl\ influences the amountof DOC. Small streams are more variable in DOC concentrations than largerstreams and rivers. I listorically, river tloodplains and small streams retainedmore water and supported greater primary production which contributed moreDOC to riverine ecosystems