Riparian management: A restoration tool for New Zealand streams

McKergow, Lucy A.; Matheson, Fleur E.; Quinn, John M.

doi:10.1111/emr.12232

Cited by 44 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 78 publications

(157 reference statements)

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“…, McKergow et al. , Daigneault et al. ), there have been relatively few tests of whether carbon additions to agricultural streams via leaf detritus actually enhance in‐stream nitrogen removal by increasing denitrification (Lammers and Bledsoe ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similarly, riparian planting can play a dual role of filtering fine sediments, nutrients, and fecal coliform bacteria from surface run-off (Hill 1996, Mayer et al 2007, Sullivan et al 2007, while also providing an ongoing carbon supply to streams to sustain in-stream denitrification. Despite the very widespread use and advocacy for riparian buffers (Osborne and Kovacic 1993, Dosskey et al 2010, McKergow et al 2016, Daigneault et al 2017, there have been relatively few tests of whether carbon additions to agricultural streams via leaf detritus actually enhance in-stream nitrogen removal by increasing denitrification (Lammers and Bledsoe 2017). Moreover, the magnitudes of effects on downstream nitrogen fluxes due catchment-wide riparian restoration are relatively poorly known.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Leaf litter additions enhance stream metabolism, denitrification, and restoration prospects for agricultural catchments

et al. 2017

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. 2017. Leaf litter additions enhance stream metabolism, denitrification, and restoration prospects for agricultural catchments. Ecosphere 8(11):e02018. 10. 1002/ecs2.2018 Abstract. Globally intensive agriculture has both increased nitrogen pollution in adjacent waterways and decreased availability of terrestrially derived carbon frequently used by stream heterotrophs in nitrogen cycling. We tested the potential for carbon additions via leaf litter from riparian restoration plantings to act as a tool for enhancing denitrification in agricultural streams with relatively high concentrations of nitrate (1.3-8.1 mg/L) in Canterbury, New Zealand. Experimental additions of leaf packs (N = 200, mass = 350 g each) were carried out in 200-m reaches of three randomly selected treatment streams and compared to three control streams receiving no additional leaf carbon. Litter additions increased ecosystem respiration in treatment streams compared to control streams but did not affect gross primary production, indicating the carbon addition boosted heterotrophic activity, a useful gauge of the activities of microbes involved in denitrification. Bench-top assays with denitrifying enzymes using acetylene inhibition techniques also suggested that the coarse particulate organic matter added from leaf packs would have provided substrates suitable for high rates of denitrification. Quantifying denitrification directly in experimental reaches by open-channel methods based on membrane inlet mass spectrophotometry indicated that denitrification was around three times higher in treatment streams where litter was added compared to control streams. We further assessed the potential for riparian plantings to reduce large-scale downstream nitrogen losses through increasing in-stream denitrification by modeling the effects of increasing riparian vegetation cover on nitrogen fluxes. Here, we combined estimates of in-stream ecosystem processes derived from our experiment with a network model of catchment-scale nitrogen retention and removal based on empirical measurements of nitrogen flux in this typical agricultural catchment. Our model indicated leaf inputs associated with increased riparian cover had the potential to double the catchment level rate of denitrification, offering a promising way to mitigate nitrate pollution in agricultural streams. Altogether, our study indicates that overcoming carbon limitation and boosting heterotrophic processes will be important for reducing nitrogen pollution in agricultural streams and that combining empirical approaches for predictions suggests there are large potential benefits from riparian re-vegetation efforts at catchment scales.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leaf litter additions enhance stream metabolism, denitrification, and restoration prospects for agricultural catchments

et al. 2017

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“…Evergreen trees that have continued growth over colder periods may be most suitable in temperate systems where nitrate export is governed by winter rainfall (McKergow et al . ). In reality, planting species with a range of traits may be best to balance the N removal parameters and ensure riparian functionality throughout the year and across the soil profile.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…A number of guides for riparian species’ choice exist based on suitability to regional environmental conditions and the desired goals of the planting (McKergow et al . ). These guides have been able to draw on data available for the impact of species choice on habitat and food quantity for freshwater invertebrates (Quinn et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Plants for nitrogen management in riparian zones: A proposed trait‐based framework to select effective species

Franklin¹,

Robinson²,

Dickinson³

2019

Eco Management Restoration

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Summary Restoring plants to the riparian zone is regarded as management best practice in river restoration and has the potential to reduce the impact of nitrogen (N) pollution on aquatic organisms and improve water quality for human use. Plant characteristics and the interplay of hydrology and biogeochemistry control N retention in the riparian zone. The balance between processes such as denitrification and plant assimilation determines riparian N retention. Plant traits are likely to mediate these N removal processes through variations in root form, growth character, foliage production (quantity, quality and rate of return to the soil) and by altering conditions in the rhizosphere soil. Vegetation can slow N transfer via direct plant uptake of N (during periods of rapid vegetation growth) and changes induced to soil hydrology, nutrient cycling and microbial activity, principally denitrification. Few studies have focused on species‐dependent effects on N movement through soil and across boundaries. We propose a new framework, based on a literature review of plant traits with respect to N cycling, which can be used to select plant species with traits likely to maximise N removal during transport through the riparian zone. In the proposed framework, inter‐specific differences in traits known to influence N mobility: root form, growth rate, foliar characteristics and rhizosphere processes, are used to describe species’ potential impact on N removal. Plant trait data may be drawn from studies outside the riparian zone; for example forest ecology, horticulture or forestry research, and candidate species are scored to predict N removal efficiency. We apply the framework to New Zealand's native riparian plant assemblages to demonstrate the trait‐based approach. This framework can guide restoration management decisions and investment in riparian revegetation in a manner that is not restricted to geographically specific or well‐studied species.

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“…Plantings and landscape-scale suppression of plant and animal pests will have improved connectivity for native biota (Glen et al 2013). Freshwater ecosystems will be recovering, with riparian plantings, reduced nutrient inputs and water use policies ensuring long-term and sustainable water quality improvements, and the functions of some of the most degraded freshwater systems (lakes, rivers, wetlands) will have been restored (Hamilton et al 2016;McKergow et al 2016). Connections among terrestrial, aquatic and marine systems will be enhanced.…”

Section: Restoration Outcomes For 2050 -The Visionmentioning

confidence: 99%