Temporal variability of the precipitation chemistry in the forest area of Istanbul, Turkey

The chemical compositions of precipitation show temporal and spatial variability. It is important to determine the temporal variation of the chemical composition of rainwater for estimating the impacts of pollutants on the forest. In this study, the 34 rainwater samples are collected using, for the first time, the specially-designed collectors between November 1997 and March 1998 in Istanbul University, Faculty of Forestry at Bahçeköy, Istanbul in Belgrad Forest. The sequentially collected samples are analysed for major ions concentrations and pH estimations. The pH value for all samples vary from 5.1-7.6. In general, the concentration of all rainwater samples decrease with time. Furthermore, it is estimated that the average Ca²⁺ (1943.0 μeql^-1) and SO₄^2-(887.3 μeql ^-1) concentrations are extremely high during the first ten minutes of the precipitation event.