Considered in the paper, is the analysis of water quality data in the various areas of the Volga River, including urban regions. As the bio-indicators of pollution we used mollusca of the family Unionidae, which are characterized by a high capacity of metal concentrations Chemical analysis was carried out by means of atomic absorption spectrometry. The main stream of the Volga River 80 km upstream of Astrakhan was chosen as a reference area. The most polluted areas were revealed and recommendations for the effective use of geo-environmental monitoring methods were given.