Tracking eutrophication in Taihu Lake using the diatom record: potential and problems

Taihu Lake is the third largest freshwater lake in China and has been experiencing eutrophication problems for several decades. Diatoms in short sediment cores from three bays in northern Taihu Lake were studied in addition to 1-year of seasonal phytoplankton samples in order to evaluate the rate and magnitude of nutrient enrichment. The dominant species found in the phytoplankton samples appeared in high percentages in the surface sediment samples, suggesting that the latter faithfully record the modern diatom flora. The diatom preservation status varied among the three cores, while in all cores the preservation deteriorated with sediment depth. Due to the superior diatom preservation in the core from Mashan Bay, the fossil diatom record of this core and an established diatom total phosphorus (TP) transfer function were used to reconstruct the nutrient history of Taihu Lake. Diatom assemblages changed from Aulacoseira-dominated to other eutrophic planktonic species, such as Stephanodiscus minutulus, Cyclostephanos tholiformis, Cyclotella atomus, C. meneghiniana and S. hantzschii in ca. 1980. Diatom-inferred TP concentrations exhibited little change prior to 1980, with values around 50 μg/l. However, after 1980 TP concentrations increased significantly and remained in excess of 100 μg/l, reflecting eutrophication of Taihu Lake. Comparison with TP measurements in the water column from 1988 to 2004, as well as the analogue analysis among fossil and modern samples, demonstrates that the diatom-TP inference model can reliably hindcast past TP concentrations. Therefore, the baseline TP value of about 50 μg/l, can be used as a restoration target for Taihu Lake. However, due to the complexity of this very large, shallow aquatic ecosystem, caution should be exercised when employing the diatom record to track eutrophication. Further studies on the mechanism of diatom distribution, evolution and preservation are recommended for Taihu Lake.     

High‐frequency water quality monitoring in an urban catchment: hydrochemical dynamics,primary production and implications for the Water Framework Directive

This paper describes the hydrochemistry of a lowland, urbanised river‐system, The Cut in England, using in situ sub‐daily sampling. The Cut receives effluent discharges from four major sewage treatment works serving around 190 000 people. These discharges consist largely of treated water, originally abstracted from the River Thames and returned via the water supply network, substantially increasing the natural flow. The hourly water quality data were supplemented by weekly manual sampling with laboratory analysis to check the hourly data and measure further determinands. Mean phosphorus and nitrate concentrations were very high, breaching standards set by EU legislation. Although 56% of the catchment area is agricultural, the hydrochemical dynamics were significantly impacted by effluent discharges which accounted for approximately 50% of the annual P catchment input loads and, on average, 59% of river flow at the monitoring point. Diurnal dissolved oxygen data demonstrated high in‐stream productivity. From a comparison of high frequency and conventional monitoring data, it is inferred that much of the primary production was dominated by benthic algae, largely diatoms. Despite the high productivity and nutrient concentrations, the river water did not become anoxic, and major phytoplankton blooms were not observed. The strong diurnal and annual variation observed showed that assessments of water quality made under the Water Framework Directive (WFD) are sensitive to the time and season of sampling. It is recommended that specific sampling time windows be specified for each determinand, and that WFD targets should be applied in combination to help identify periods of greatest ecological risk. © 2015 The Authors. Hydrological Processes published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.     

Nitrogen and phosphorus intake by phytoplankton in the Xiamen Bay

This paper describes a time series experiment examining the nitrogen and phosphorus intake of natural phytoplankton communities by a microcosms approach.Seawater samples containing natural phytoplankton communities were collected from waters around Baozhu Islet in inner Xiamen Bay and around Qingyu Islet in the outer bay.The goal was to elucidate the relationship between phytoplankton population enhancement,the biological removal of nitrogen and phosphorus from the seawater,and the phytoplankton nitrogen an...     

云南白登浅海相磷块岩与青龙哨陆相磷块岩的对比研究

白登磷矿是我国重要的浅海相磷块岩矿床,而青龙哨磷矿是我国重要的陆相磷块岩矿床.两地磷矿品位高,储量大,是滇池地区正在开采的2个重要磷矿基地.野外工作研究发现,青龙哨角砾状磷块岩顶板的磷锶铝石矿层和高岭土黏土岩二者呈超覆式不整合接触.深入研究发现其具有陆相磷块岩的许多特征,而没有浅海相磷块岩的原生沉积构造特征.同时,白登磷矿见上下2层工业矿体,而青龙哨磷矿仅见1层工业矿体.对此二矿床特点进行了对比分析.     

Characteristics and Influence of Phosphorus Accumulated in the Bed Sediments of a Stream Located in an Agricultural Watershed

We investigated the accumulation and influence of bioavailable P (BAP) in sediments of a stream located in an agricultural area of the Lake Mendota watershed in Wisconsin, USA. During hydrologic events, the stream carried high concentrations of suspended sediment (up to 250 mg/l) and BAP (up to 2.5 mg/l). Bed sediments were highly enriched in BAP, as inventories of BAP in the top 10 cm of sediment ranged from 143 to 14,500 μg P/cm². Space variations in BAP inventories were related to site-specific hydrodynamics and geochemical factors, including iron (Fe; r ² = 0.71) and aluminum (Al; r ² = 0.54) concentrations. Most sites behaved as potential sinks for dissolved reactive phosphate during hydrologic events and potential sources during base-flow periods. Through the combination of site-specific factors and geochemical controls, Dorn Creek modifies the amount, timing, and composition of P delivered from the watershed to downstream sites and water bodies.     

Estimation of phosphorus loads with sparse data for agricultural watersheds in the Czech Republic

Abstract

Agricultural watersheds in the Czech Republic are one of the primary sources of non-point-source phosphorus (P) loads in receiving waters. Since such non-point sources are generally located in headwater catchments, streamflow and P concentration data are sparse. We show how very short daily streamflow and P concentration records can be combined with nearby longer existing daily streamflow records to result in reliable estimates of daily and annual P concentrations and loads. Maintenance of variance streamflow record extension methods (MOVE) can be employed to extend short streamflow records. Constituent load regressions are used to predict daily P constituent loads from streamflow and other time varying characteristics. Annual P loads are then estimated for individual watersheds. Resulting annual P load estimates ranged from 0.21 to 95.4 kg year^-1 with a mean value of 11.77 kg year^-1. Similarly annual P yield estimates ranged from 0.01 to 0.3 kg ha^-1 year^-1 with an average yield of 0.07 kg ha^-1 year^-1. We document how short records of daily streamflow and P concentrations can be combined with a national network of daily streamflow records in the Czech Republic to arrive at meaningful and reliable estimates of annual P loads for small agricultural watersheds.

Citation Beránková, T., Vogel, R. M., Fiala, D. & Rosendorf, P. (2010) Estimation of phosphorus loads with sparse data for agricultural watersheds in the Czech Republic. Hydrol. Sci. J. 55(8), 1417–1426.     

Uncertainties in mean discharges from two large South American rivers due to rating curve variability

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of land application of sewage sludge on phosphorus (P) losses during intense rainfall. Three rainfall simulations (40 mm h^?1 of 30 min duration) were conducted on a field amended with sewage sludge. The overland flow water (OFW) was monitored and sampled every minute. The suspended solid, the dissolved and total phosphorus (respectively SS, TP and DP) concentrations were analysed. The forms of particulate bound P (PP) were investigated. Several results stem from this experiment: (a) sludge application induced a large increase in the DP content of the OFW; the concentrations obtained (0.15–0.57 mg l^?1) were shown to result from desorption processes from the SS; and (b) in contrast, sludge application affected neither the SS content nor the TP concentration of OFW (9.5 g mg l^?1 P, consisting of PP for 95%). However, sludge preserved the structure of soil surface and led to a 45% decrease in runoff rate (150 m³ ha^?1 collected on the test surface compared to 290 m³ ha^?1 on a reference). This indirectly reduced TP losses (2.7 kg ha^?1 on the reference surface compared to 1.4 kg ha^?1 on the test surface).     

The impact of agricultural land use on stream chemistry and inputs to an inland reservoir: case of the Sauce Grande River,Argentina

Abstract

Water quality in the Paso Piedras Reservoir has deteriorated, primarily due to periodic blue-green algal blooms, making it temporarily unfit for human consumption. This phenomenon results from the eutrophication of waters of the watershed, and nutrients are considered to be the primary contributors to degradation of freshwater quality. In order to reduce the levels of nitrogen and, most of all, phosphorus, entering the Paso Piedras Reservoir, it is necessary to understand the incidence of diffuse transfers of nutrients from agricultural soils. The nitrogen composition, soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) and other physico-chemical parameters of the water were analysed in various different parts of the watershed in order to characterize water input to the reservoir from areas with different anthropogenic activity. The upper Sauce Grande basin was divided into three areas with different edaphic characteristics. The physico-chemical parameters measured in sampling surveys included: SRP, ammonium and nitrate, pH, conductivity, turbidity, and total solids. The results showed that the water of the Sauce Grande (areas 1 and 2) was not strongly contaminated, but in El Divisorio (Area 3, which is a sub-watershed whose stream flows directly into the Paso Piedras Reservoir), the levels of conductivity, total suspended sediments and SRP were so high that its contribution to the reservoir accounts for nearly 50% of the total SRP input. The main characteristics of El Divisorio watershed that make it a diffuse source of SRP were not only that its soils, under agricultural-livestock production, have significant slopes, so that water and wind erosion are faster, but also that human intervention had caused the destruction of aggregates. The results showed the influence of the soil characteristics, production systems and the micro-environment developed in the reservoir on the characteristics of waters flowing out of the reservoir. The two villages located in Area 2 had no significant influence on the concentration of nitrogen compounds and SRP found downstream.     

再力花/菖蒲生物湿地床去除河水中氮磷的试验

采用再力花和菖蒲构建湿地床,以考察其对污染河水的净化效果。6个月的连续试验表明:在水力负荷为0.24 m3/(m2.d)、植物种植密度大于158株/m2的条件下,2种植物存活率均大于93%,说明植物能适应低污染负荷、高种植密度的无土培养环境;再力花和菖蒲湿地床月均去除率分别为:总氮(TN),48.22%～78.53%和43.23%～72.42%;总磷(TP),77.62%～85.67%和58.07%～80.77%。再力花湿地床对TN、TP的净化效果好于菖蒲湿地床;2种植物吸收N、P含量分别占去除总量的比例:N为44.14%、37.75%,P为73.43%、62.05%。湿地床技术可有效去除来水中的TN、TP,通过植物吸收作用累积N、P含量较高,不同种类的植物构建湿地床对污染河水中N、P去除效果存在显著差异,且硝化反硝化和植物吸收是去除N的主要途径,而植物吸收是去除P的有效手段。