Use of flow-normalization to evaluate nutrient concentration and flux changes in Lake Champlain tributaries, 1990–2009

Medalie, Laura; Hirsch, Robert M.; Archfield, Stacey A.

doi:10.1016/j.jglr.2011.10.002

Cited by 40 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 31 publications

(33 reference statements)

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“…Despite total nitrogen concentrations in the Pike and Missisquoi Rivers generally being high (McCarthy et al, 2013;Medalie et al, 2012), TN concentrations in our study were low at all four Missisquoi Bay sites, and decreased during summer. Few correlations were found between TN and cyanobacterial biomass, although several taxa were significantly negatively correlated with oxidised nitrogen concentrations.…”

Section: Possible Environmental Effects On Cyanobacterial Distributiocontrasting

confidence: 79%

“…In particular, the eastern sites (b and d2) tend to have higher total phosphorus concentrations, pH and turbidity, and lower Secchi disc transparency, compared to the centre (a) and western (d8) sites. The Pike River, whose catchment has high annual nutrient yields (Medalie et al, 2012), discharges into Missisquoi Bay close to Site b. The Missisquoi and the Rock Rivers are also major sources of nutrients (Smeltzer and Simoneau, 2008) that enter the southern and eastern parts of the bay, discharging northwards towards Saint-Armand (Crowley et al, 2009) and influencing water quality on the eastern side of the bay.…”

Section: Possible Environmental Effects On Cyanobacterial Distributiomentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Missisquoi Bay is eutrophic, suffering excess phosphorus inputs from agricultural and urban areas within its catchment (Medalie et al, 2012;Wheeler et al, 2012). Total phosphorus concentrations increased by 72% between 197972% between and 200972% between (Smeltzer et al, 2012, with concentrations averaging 45 μg/L between 1999 and 2003 (Zananski et al, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Heterogeneous spatial and temporal cyanobacterial distributions in Missisquoi Bay, Lake Champlain: An analysis of a 9 year data set

Bowling

Blais

Sinotte

2015

Journal of Great Lakes Research

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Section: Possible Environmental Effects On Cyanobacterial Distributiocontrasting

confidence: 79%

Section: Possible Environmental Effects On Cyanobacterial Distributiomentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Heterogeneous spatial and temporal cyanobacterial distributions in Missisquoi Bay, Lake Champlain: An analysis of a 9 year data set

Bowling

Blais

Sinotte

2015

Journal of Great Lakes Research

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“…These researchers determined that P-saturated soil could not adsorb additional P and it was lost to the stream (Sonoda and Yeakley 2007). In addition to the importance of the source area on P transport to the stream, seasonal fluctuations in flow may mean that P concentrations may lag behind other watershed characteristics because sediment-bound P is deposited and resuspended repeatedly over time (Medalie et al 2012). Further differences between our findings and those of other studies (table 3) may reflect differential nutrient inputs or land use pressures.…”

Section: Meanmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…One reason may be that when the system is saturated with nutrients, the ability of plants to absorb additional N reaches capacity and excess N may be lost from the system. Similarly, timing of N inputs may not be concurrent with timing of biomass demands (Sprague et al 2011) or there may be a time lag in transport or detection of nutrients lost during periods of very low flow because of settling (Medalie et al 2012).…”

Section: Meanmentioning

confidence: 99%

An investigation of water nutrient levels associated with forest vegetation in highly altered landscapes

Golay¹,

Thompson²,

Mabry³

et al. 2013

Journal of Soil and Water Conservation

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Stream pollution by nutrient loading is a chronic problem in the Midwest, United States, and greater impacts on water quality are expected as agricultural production and urban areas expand. Remnant riparian forests are critical for maintaining ecosystem functions in this landscape context, allowing water infiltration and capture of nutrients before they are lost from the system. Our objective was to identify linkages between riparian forest plant community composition and water quality in remnant forested headwater streams. We identified watersheds with embedded headwater streams in three land use categories: grazed, urban, and preserved. We assessed plant community composition and nutrient storage. We sampled the forest streams to monitor discharge rates and sediment, nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) loads. Herbaceous communities in preserved riparian forests had more native specialist species than urban or grazed sites. Plant N content was higher in preserved forests (17. Stream water nitrate (NO 3 -N) concentration and total P delivery were highest for streams in urban areas. The most pronounced differences for plant composition and stream discharge and pollutant loads were between preserved and urban forests. Seasonal patterns were variable. We detected a weak negative but seasonally important relationship between plant N content and stream water N. We did not detect a similar relationship for P, which may indicate saturation of this nutrient in the watershed system. Detailed knowledge about relationships between land use, plant community composition, and water quality outcomes could be used to target forest restoration efforts in landscapes highly impacted by humans. Human land use has had far-reaching effects on natural systems. There is increasingly extensive and intensive pressure for arable land to produce food, fiber, and fuel (Secchi et al. 2008), which are then translocated globally, effectively decoupling natural cycles of water and nutrients. Likewise, the places where people live and work are expanding, with exurban sprawl and pressure intensifying due to growing populations in urban areas. This in turn leads to an increase in the importation and concentration of water and nutrients and disrupts ecosystem processes (Groffman et al. 2003;Bernhardt et al. 2008). Abstract: Stream pollution by nutrient loading is a chronic problem in the Midwest, United States, and greater impacts on water quality are expected as agricultural production and urban areas expand. Remnant riparian forests are critical for maintaining ecosystem functions in this landscape context, allowing water infiltration and capture of nutrients before they are lost from the system. Our objective was to identify linkages between riparian forest plant community composition and water quality in remnant forested headwater streams. We identified watersheds with embedded headwater streams in three land use categories: grazed, urban, and preserved. We assessed plant community composition and nutrient storage. We sampled the forest st...

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Decadal surface water quality trends under variable climate, land use, and hydrogeochemical setting in Iowa, USA

Green

Bekins

Kalkhoff

et al. 2014

Water Resources Research

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Understanding how nitrogen fluxes respond to changes in agriculture and climate is important for improving water quality. In the midwestern United States, expansion of corn cropping for ethanol production led to increasing N application rates in the 2000s during a period of extreme variability of annual precipitation. To examine the effects of these changes, surface water quality was analyzed in 10 major Iowa Rivers. Several decades of concentration and flow data were analyzed with a statistical method that provides internally consistent estimates of the concentration history and reveals flow-normalized trends that are independent of year-to-year streamflow variations. Flow-normalized concentrations of nitrate1nitrite-N decreased from 2000 to 2012 in all basins. To evaluate effects of annual discharge and N loading on these trends, multiple conceptual models were developed and calibrated to flow-weighted annual concentrations. The recent declining concentration trends can be attributed to both very high and very low discharge in the 2000s and to the long (e.g., 8 year) subsurface residence times in some basins. Dilution of N and depletion of stored N occurs in years with high discharge. Reduced N transport and increased N storage occurs in low-discharge years. Central Iowa basins showed the greatest reduction in flow-normalized concentrations, likely because of smaller storage volumes and shorter residence times. Effects of land-use changes on the water quality of major Iowa Rivers may not be noticeable for years or decades in peripheral basins of Iowa, and may be obscured in the central basins where extreme flows strongly affect annual concentration trends.

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Use of flow-normalization to evaluate nutrient concentration and flux changes in Lake Champlain tributaries, 1990–2009

Cited by 40 publications

References 31 publications

Heterogeneous spatial and temporal cyanobacterial distributions in Missisquoi Bay, Lake Champlain: An analysis of a 9 year data set

Heterogeneous spatial and temporal cyanobacterial distributions in Missisquoi Bay, Lake Champlain: An analysis of a 9 year data set

An investigation of water nutrient levels associated with forest vegetation in highly altered landscapes

Decadal surface water quality trends under variable climate, land use, and hydrogeochemical setting in Iowa, USA

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