Shodor Foundation The Neuse River Education Team NCSU Water Quality Group

More on Oxygen

The amount of oxygen found in the water is expressed as a concentration of dissolved oxygen (DO). The maximum amount of DO that water can sustain is somewhere between 9 mg/L and 12 mg/L, depending on the specific river and the temperature that part of the river is.

Here is a more detailed chart of what the DO should be for a water body based on what its intended use is:


Designated use Lowest DO value
Warm water fish 5.0
Cold water fish
spawning season
6.0
7.0
Estuarine biota 5.0
Recreation 3.0