GLORICH - Global River Chemistry Database

To meet the increasing demand for hydrochemical data, the new GLObal RIver CHemistry database GLORICH was published 2019, and comprises 1.27 million samples distributed over 17,000 sampling locations. The reported hydrochemical parameters include concentrations of major ions, nutrients (N, P, Si), organic and inorganic carbon, alkalinity, pH, dissolved oxygen and water temperature. For 15,500 sampling locations, the catchments could be derived, ranging in size from < 0.6 km² to > 5.3 million km².

Hydrochemical data were mostly gathered from environmental monitoring programs, but also from scientific literature. The data were homogenized and test routines for the feasibility of data helped to identify erroneous or implausible data. Catchment boundaries and catchment properties were calculated, which include lithological composition, soil properties, climate, lake abundance, topography, land cover, and population density. Some of the catchment property data are available on monthly basis, e.g. runoff. A detailed list of water quality parameter coverage is provided in the table below. Sample locations and their catchment outlines are presented in the figure above.

The GLORICH database can be downloaded from PANGEA