Metolachlor metabolite (MESA) reveals agricultural nitrate-N fate and transport in Choptank River watershed

McCarty, Gregory W.; Hapeman, Cathleen J.; Rice, Clifford P.; Hively, W. Dean; McConnell, Laura L.; Sadeghi, Ali; Lang, Megan W.; Whitall, David R.; Białek, Krystyna; Downey, Peter M.

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2013.12.017

Cited by 28 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 38 publications

(71 reference statements)

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“…Depending on present land use (Mulholland et al, 2008) and land management (Basu et al, 2010;Marwick et al, 2014;McCarty et al, 2014), the balance between N inputs (fertilizers, N deposition, N fixation) and N uptake by plants is the main driver, especially in agricultural landscapes. Organic nitrogen mineralization in soils also plays a major part, in relation to biological activity (Bormann and Likens, 1967), climate (Mitchell et al,…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nitrate sinks and sources as controls of spatio-temporal water quality dynamics in an agricultural headwater catchment

Schuetz¹,

Gascuel‐Odoux²,

Durand³

et al. 2016

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. Several controls are known to affect water quality of stream networks during flow recession periods, such as solute leaching processes, surface water-groundwater interactions as well as biogeochemical in-stream turnover processes. Throughout the stream network, combinations of specific water and solute export rates and local in-stream conditions overlay the biogeochemical signals from upstream sections. Therefore, upstream sections can be considered functional units which could be distinguished and ordered regarding their relative contribution to nutrient dynamics at the catchment outlet. Based on snapshot sampling of flow and nitrate concentrations along the stream in an agricultural headwater during the summer flow recession period, we determined spatial and temporal patterns of water quality for the whole stream. A data-driven, in-stream-mixingand-removal model was developed and applied for analysing the spatio-temporal in-stream retention processes and their effect on the spatio-temporal fluxes of nitrate from subcatchments. Thereby, we have been able to distinguish quantitatively between nitrate sinks, sources per stream reaches, and subcatchments, and thus we could disentangle the overlay of nitrate sink and source signals. For nitrate sources, we determined their permanent and temporal impact on stream water quality and for nitrate sinks, we found increasing nitrate removal efficiencies from upstream to downstream. Our results highlight the importance of distinct nitrate source locations within the watershed for in-stream concentrations and in-stream removal processes, respectively. Thus, our findings contribute to the development of a more dynamic perception of water quality in streams and rivers concerning ecological and sustainable water resource management.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nitrate sinks and sources as controls of spatio-temporal water quality dynamics in an agricultural headwater catchment

Schuetz¹,

Gascuel‐Odoux²,

Durand³

et al. 2016

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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“…All these properties taken together suggest that MESA under the right conditions can be a good indicator of nitrate loadings from agriculture (McCarty et al, 2014). For example, concentrations of MESA were relatively high in the unconfined groundwater of Morgan Creek in Maryland (United States), and MESA loads were well correlated with nitrate-N loads (Domagalski et al, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Analysis of metolachlor ethane sulfonic acid (MESA) chirality in groundwater: A tool for dating groundwater movement in agricultural settings

Rice

McCarty

Bialek-Kalinski

et al. 2016

Science of The Total Environment

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“…It is estimated that agriculture accounts for~80% of the Choptank's nutrient loadings (nitrogen and phosphorus) to the Chesapeake Bay; roughly 60% of the watershed area is covered by agriculture [28]. For this reason, the Choptank River Basin and the nearby regions have been the focus of multiple federal studies, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)-Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP) and the USDA Long-term Agro-ecosystem Research (LTAR) Network [29,30]. This has led to extensive research and monitoring projects within the basin in recent years.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Water Quality Sampling Approaches on Nitrate Load Predictions of a Prominent Regression-Based Model

Sharifi

Yen

Wallace

et al. 2017

Water

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High frequency in-situ measurements of nitrate can greatly reduce uncertainty in nitrate flux estimates. Water quality databases maintained by various federal and state agencies often consist of pollutant concentration data obtained from periodic grab samples collected from gauged reaches of a stream. Regression models, such as the LOAD ESTimator (LOADEST), are frequently used to model variations in concentrations associated with changes in water discharge to provide integrated solute flux measurements. However, uncertainty in the relationships between nutrient concentration and flow may lead to errors in the corresponding flux estimates. In this study, a high frequency, in-situ measurement of nitrate concentration was implemented to ascertain uncertainty in the concentration/discharge relationship caused by nitrate hysteresis. It was found that observed nitrate hysteresis, as influenced by complex storm/watershed interactions, was not readily predictable. Therefore, it can lead to substantial nitrate flux uncertainty, based on periodic grab sample monitoring approaches. Scientists and engineers should take advantage of the proposed findings in future studies to enhance the quality of the associated decision making processes.

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Metolachlor metabolite (MESA) reveals agricultural nitrate-N fate and transport in Choptank River watershed

Cited by 28 publications

References 38 publications

Nitrate sinks and sources as controls of spatio-temporal water quality dynamics in an agricultural headwater catchment

Nitrate sinks and sources as controls of spatio-temporal water quality dynamics in an agricultural headwater catchment

Analysis of metolachlor ethane sulfonic acid (MESA) chirality in groundwater: A tool for dating groundwater movement in agricultural settings

Effect of Water Quality Sampling Approaches on Nitrate Load Predictions of a Prominent Regression-Based Model

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