Overview
ISO 5667-6:2014 - Water quality - Sampling - Part 6: Guidance on sampling of rivers and streams provides internationally recognized principles for designing sampling programmes, selecting sampling techniques, and handling water samples from rivers and streams for physical and chemical assessment. The standard focuses on maintaining sample integrity and safety during collection and is expressly not applicable to estuarine/coastal waters, microbiological sampling (see ISO 19458), sediments, suspended solids, biota, dammed (standing) waters, or passive sampling (see ISO 5667-23).
Key topics and technical requirements
ISO 5667-6:2014 organizes practical guidance across the sampling workflow and includes:
- Design of sampling programmes - objectives, sampling frequency, and representativeness.
- Sampling location and point selection - choosing appropriate cross-sections and positions to obtain representative samples.
- Timing and frequency - considerations for flow variation and event-based sampling.
- Preparation for sampling - site reconnaissance, risk assessment, and safety training.
- Sampling at specific locations - procedures and precautions for bridges, in-stream, bank-side, from craft, and under-ice sampling.
- Sampling methods - single discrete samples, depth-specific sampling, composite approaches.
- Sampling equipment - manual devices, samplers for surface films (LNAPL), depth samplers, and automatic sampling devices.
- Taking the sample - arrival on site, equipment rinsing, direct vs. indirect sampling, incremental sampling, field preservation, and labelling.
- Stabilization, transport, and storage - preserving analytes, chain-of-custody, and traceability during transport to laboratory.
- Quality assurance - contamination avoidance, documentation, QA/QC checks and sampling records.
- Reporting and documentation - sampling protocols and analytical report requirements.
- Safety precautions - health and safety training for sampling personnel.
These topics are reflected in the standard’s clauses and annexes (e.g., mixing distance calculation and example sampling reports).
Practical applications and who uses it
ISO 5667-6 is intended for:
- Environmental agencies and regulators conducting river monitoring and compliance checks
- Water quality laboratories and field sampling teams
- Consultants performing impact assessments, pollution investigations, and baseline studies
- Research institutions studying hydrology, aquatic chemistry, and ecosystem health
- Utilities and industries monitoring discharges and intake water quality
Use cases include routine monitoring, impact assessment after spills, trend analysis, and design of sampling networks for river basins.
Related standards
- ISO 5667 series (Part 1, 3, 4, 11, 14, 23, etc.) - comprehensive water sampling guidance
- ISO 19458 - microbiological sampling guidance for water
- ISO 6107-2 - water quality vocabulary
Keywords: ISO 5667-6:2014, water quality sampling, rivers and streams, sampling programme design, sampling methods, sample preservation, river monitoring, environmental monitoring.
