Storm water contamination and its effect on the quality of urban surface waters

Barałkiewicz, Danuta; Chudzińska, Maria; Szpakowska, Barbara; Świerk, Dariusz; Gołdyn, Ryszard; Dondajewska, Renata

doi:10.1007/s10661-014-3889-0

Cited by 62 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 27 publications

(30 reference statements)

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“…The biogeochemical fingerprint of urban land cover on stormwater quality is undisputable, as the concentrations and loads increased with urban intensity. The studied concentrations (except SO 4 ) exhibited positive covariation with urban land cover type and negative relationships with vegetation coverage (in agreement with Schoonover et al, ; Fitzpatrick et al, ), which has been shown to trap substances effectively (Barałkiewicz et al, ). Valtanen et al () identified similar association between watershed perviousness and spatial variation of total nutrients, TDS, and metal concentrations.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Spatio‐temporal patterns of major ions in urban stormwater under cold climate

Taka

Kokkonen

Kuoppamäki

et al. 2017

Hydrological Processes

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Multiple natural and anthropogenic factors affect urban water chemistry. However, little is known about the abundance or temporal variation of major ions in urban runoff. This study explores the spatio‐temporal variation of major dissolved ions (Na, K, Ca, Mg, Cl, NO3, and SO4) and total dissolved solids (TDS) in cold climate urban stormwater. Three watersheds with varying degrees of urban land use intensity and imperviousness (from 36% to 66%) in Helsinki, Finland, were continuously monitored for 5 years using an automated sampling procedure to obtain stormwater discharge and ion concentrations and, thus, loadings. High‐resolution datasets, including long‐term continuous discharge, both measured and simulated (using Storm Water Management Model), and automatic water quality sampling enabled the accurate calculation of loads of ions and TDS. Water quality was related to explanatory watershed characteristics (e.g., watershed physiography and sampling time) using hierarchical clustering, nonmetric multidimensional scaling, and hierarchical partitioning methods. Urban land use contributed to increased ion concentrations and loads year‐round. This study highlights how stormwater ion concentrations are elevated across seasons, indicating chronic pollution phenomena. The greatest loads occurred during summer (except for Na and Cl), while the highest variation in loads was observed in autumn. Significant clusters among ions were found in the hierarchical cluster analysis, suggesting similar temporal patterns and sources for the ions in each cluster. The importance of land use was evident, though in the most urbanized watershed, concentrations were not linked to any of the investigated watershed characteristics. Based on our results, only Na and Cl are manageable by alternative winter road antiskid practices, whereas other ions resulted from diffuse pollution sources, being therefore more difficult to control. Finally, this study contributes to an increased understanding of the temporal and spatial patterns of ions in stormwater and highlights the need for consistent time series data for ion monitoring under cold climatic conditions in order to enable reliable estimates of their loads to adjacent water bodies. Finally, year‐round stormwater treatment is highly recommended.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Spatio‐temporal patterns of major ions in urban stormwater under cold climate

Taka

Kokkonen

Kuoppamäki

et al. 2017

Hydrological Processes

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“…The average concentrations of nitrate-nitrogen (NO 3 --N), ammonium-nitrogen (NH 4 + -N), total N, molybdate-reactive P, total P, and suspended matter in the runoff of Nanjing City, China were 8, 2, 6, 15, 6 and 4 times greater than those of the forested watershed, respectively. Barałkiewicz et al (2014) observed that the Cd, Zn, Pb, and Co in the runoff from the largest impervious area had the strongest toxic effect on aquatic organisms. In the city areas, soil loses almost all of its inherent physical and chemical ability to filter, absorb and purify water.…”

Section: Water Qualitymentioning

confidence: 94%

Formation, characteristics and eco-environmental implications of urban soils – A review

Yang

Zhang

2015

Soil Science and Plant Nutrition

120

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Soils in urban areas have versatile functions, and their ecological services, especially the ability to buffer and purify pollutants, are very much needed. However, the formation and characteristics of urban soils are strongly affected by human activities, and so are their functions. In urban areas, soil horizons are often irregularly established, with anthropogenic layers and a high degree of heterogeneity owing to human disturbance and infill. Soil structure is often under degradation due to artifacts and technogenic substrata, mechanical compaction and human trampling. Physical degradation, such as compaction and destruction of structure, may reduce the ability of urban soils in infiltrating water and storing capacity, thus causing a higher runoff and pollutant load to the receiving water bodies. Soil compaction is also believed to worsen city heat island effects by reflecting more radiation, and seriously reduce the soil gas capacity and exchange. However, soil sealing fully loses its service function, further deteriorating urban ecology and environment. Enrichment of various waste materials associated with human activities, including nutrient elements, heavy metals and organic pollution, is the major problem of the urban soil environment. Materials containing rich liming in the urban soils lead to alkaline soil conditions, which can change element speciation and activities. The main features of urban soil contamination are characterized by strong accumulation of so-called "urban elements" such as copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), lead (Pb) and mercury (Hg), but less accumulation of other heavy metals. During the process of urban development, heavy metal contamination of urban soils not only happens nowadays, but also did in the past, especially when primitive mining and metal processing prevailed. Furthermore, urban soils are often polluted by organic pollutants, especially polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Platinum group elements (PGE), especially platinum (Pt), palladium (Pd) and rhodium (Rh) from automobile exhaust catalysts, are also accumulated in urban soils as affected by traffic. Physical and chemical degradation decrease soil enzymes and microbial activities, especially in industrial zones with high concentrations of heavy metals, low concentrations of organic matter and serious compaction. Unfortunately, the evolution of urban soil and attenuation of ecological function are believed to ultimately harm human welfare. Therefore, it is very important to establish a risk assessment system for better management of urban soil resources.

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“…These areas are frequently lack adequate sewerage, having only septic tanks which may fail to work properly, thus most of the wastewater infiltrates through the ground into the lake (Hall and Härkönen, 2006). Such usage brings about an acceleration of eutrophication and the aquatic ecosystem becomes extremely degraded (Zuccarini et al, 2011;Barałkiewicz et al, 2014;Grochowska et al, 2015). The lake can no longer be used recreationally and most of the other ecosystem services are also lost (Xu et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Response of vegetation to growing recreational pressure in the shallow Raczyńskie Lake

Rosińska

Gołdyn

2018

Knowl. Manag. Aquat. Ecosyst.

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-Strong human impact accelerates eutrophication which deteriorates water quality and consequently prevents recreational use. Increasing trophy and low transparency induce macrophyte rebuilding. A gradual transformation of the land use of the direct catchment area of Raczyń skie Lake from agricultural to recreational has been observed over the last 45 years. In built-up areas sewage facilities were inadequate and septic tanks did not work properly and as a consequence most wastewater was able to infiltrate through the ground into the lake. The lake ecosystem became unstable and water blooms intensified. The aim of the study was to assess the changes in the composition of the lake vegetation over the last 45 years, during which the use of the direct catchment has changed and recreational pressure increased. A reduction of the number of plant communities from 24 to 15 and the disappearance of almost all the submerged vegetation was observed. The dominant reed beds (Phragmitetum communis, Typhetum angustifoliae) were unable to provide a sufficient barrier to the flow of pollution from the catchment because of the numerous gaps made for angling piers, bathing sites, jetties, etc. The macrophyte index indicated a bad ecological status. To improve the ecological status of Raczyń skie Lake it is necessary to introduce intensive protection and restoration treatments.Keywords: macrophyte community / submerged macrophyte / human impact / recreation / WFD Résumé -Réponse de la végétation à la pression récréative croissante dans le lac peu profond Raczyń ski. Un fort impact humain accélère l'eutrophisation, ce qui détériore la qualité de l'eau et, par conséquent, empêche l'utilisation récréative. L'augmentation de trophie et la faible transparence induisent la dégradation des macrophytes. Au cours des 45 dernières années, on a observé une transformation graduelle de l'utilisation des terres du bassin versant proche du lac Raczynskie, qui est passé de l'agriculture aux loisirs. Dans les zones bâties, les installations d'égouts étaient inadéquates et les fosses septiques ne fonctionnaient pas correctement, de sorte que la plupart des eaux usées pouvaient s'infiltrer dans le lac par le sol. L'écosystème du lac est devenu instable et la prolifération d'algues s'est intensifiée. L'objectif de l'étude était d'évaluer les changements dans la composition de la végétation lacustre pendant les 45 dernières années, au cours desquelles l'utilisation du bassin versant a changé et la pression récréative a augmenté. On a observé une réduction du nombre de communautés végétales de 24 à 15 et la disparition de presque toute la végétation submergée. Les roselières dominantes (Phragmitetum communis, Typhetum angustifoliae) n'ont pas été en mesure de fournir une barrière suffisante à l'écoulement de la pollution du bassin versant en raison des nombreuses brèches faites pour les pontons de pêche, les sites de baignade, les jetées, etc. L'indice des macrophytes indique un mauvais état écologique. Pour améliorer l'état écologique du lac R...

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Storm water contamination and its effect on the quality of urban surface waters

Cited by 62 publications

References 27 publications

Spatio‐temporal patterns of major ions in urban stormwater under cold climate

Spatio‐temporal patterns of major ions in urban stormwater under cold climate

Formation, characteristics and eco-environmental implications of urban soils – A review

Response of vegetation to growing recreational pressure in the shallow Raczyńskie Lake

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