Simulating the dynamics of sulfur species and zinc in wetland sediments

In situ measurements comparing vertical SO₄²⁻ profiles in vegetated and non-vegetated sediments showed that SO₄²⁻ concentrations in vegetated sediments increased significantly at the beginning of the growing season and then gradually decreased during the rest of the growing season. Throughout the growing season, SO₄²⁻ concentrations remained higher in the vegetated sediments than in the sediments without plants. The higher SO₄²⁻ concentrations in the vegetated sediments indicate that oxygen release from roots and evapotranspiration-induced advection by plants play an important role in the dynamics of sulfur species in sediments. Since the total pool of solid-phase sulfide is relatively large compared to the mass of SO₄²⁻ in the sediments, the gradual decrease of SO₄²⁻ concentrations may result from limitation of the solid-phase sulfide that is in direct contact with or very close to the roots and rhizomes. This would mean that the main pool of solid-phase sulfide and associated trace metals are not affected by the oxygen release from roots, and the associated trace metals will not become bioavailable during the growing season.     

Bird Use of Restoration and Reference Marshes Within the Barn Island Wildlife Management Area, Stonington, Connecticut, USA

/ Tidal marshes have been actively restored in Connecticut for nearly 20 years, but evaluations of these projects are typically based solely on observations of vegetation change. A formerly impounded valley marsh at the Barn Island Wildlife Management Area is a notable exception; previous research at this site has also included assessments of primary productivity, macroinvertebrates, and use by fishes. To determine the effects of marsh restoration on higher trophic levels, we monitored bird use at five sites within the Barn Island complex, including both restoration and reference marshes. Use by summer bird populations within fixed plots was monitored over two years at all sites. Our principal focus was Impoundment One, a previously impounded valley marsh reopened to full tidal exchange in 1982. This restoration site supported a greater abundance of wetland birds than our other sites, indicating that it is at least equivalent to reference marshes within the same system for this ecological function. Moreover, the species richness of birds and their frequency of occurrence at Impoundment One was greater than at 11 other estuarine marshes in southeastern Connecticut surveyed in a related investigation. A second marsh, under restoration for approximately ten years, appears to be developing in a similar fashion. These results complement previous studies on vegetation, macroinvertebrates, and fish use in this system to show that, over time, the reintroduction of tidal flooding can effectively restore important ecological functions to previously impounded tidal marshes.KEY WORDS: Estuarine; Tidal marsh; Wetland birds; Restoration     

Constructed wetlands for mitigation of atrazine-associated agricultural runoff

Atrazine was amended into constructed wetlands (59-73x14x0.3 m) for the purpose of monitoring transport and fate of the pesticide to obtain information necessary to provide future design parameters for constructed wetlands mitigation of agricultural runoff. Following pesticide amendment, a simulated storm and runoff event equal to three volume additions was imposed on each wetland. Targeted atrazine concentrations were 0 microg/l (unamended control), 73 microg/l, and 147 microg/l. Water, sediment, and plant samples were collected weekly for 35 days from transects longitudinally distributed throughout each wetland and were analyzed for atrazine using gas chromatography. Between 17 and 42% of measured atrazine mass was within the first 30-36 m of wetlands. Atrazine was below detection limits (0.05 microg/kg) in all sediment and plant samples collected throughout the duration of this study. Aqueous half lives ranged from 16 to 48 days. According to these data, conservative buffer travel distances of 100-280 m would be necessary for effective runoff mitigation.     

复合人工湿地系统对生活污水的净化效果

将垂直流人工湿地与水平流人工湿地组成复合人工湿地系统,研究了此复合系统对化粪池出水的净化效果。结果表明,当水平流人工湿地的水力停留时间为3d天时,复合系统对COD、BOD5、TP的去除率分别达到73％、66％、87％,并通过垂直流湿地的硝化作用及水平流湿地的反硝化作用,复合系统对TN的去除率达到40％以上。     

“水解酸化—预曝气—人工湿地”处理生活污水的试验研究

试验研究了"水解酸化-预曝气-人工湿地"组合工艺对农村生活污水的处理效果,结果表明系统对COD、BOD5、TN、NH3-N、TP去除率分别为75%~85%8、8%~91%、54%~67%、75%~87%8、8%~94%。该工艺操作简易,处理效果好,符合村镇生活污水处理的需求。     

关于大庆龙凤湿地环境管理问题的思考

大庆龙凤湿地是除香港外国内唯一的城区中的湿地,在城市生态环境保护中具有重要意义。虽然建成自然保护区,并设立保护区管理处,但湿地资源仍受到破坏。剖析大庆龙凤湿地环境管理中问题的产生原因,研究湿地的保护措施及合理开发利用。     

人工湿地系统植物床内CODcr动态变化规律探讨

人工湿地处理污水系统植物床内各监测点的上、下层 Ｃ Ｏ Ｄｃｒ值虽有一定的差别,但经过成对平均数比较分析发现这种差别并未形成明显的趋势。污水在植物床基质中流动时,随着迁移距离的延长,其中的 Ｃ Ｏ Ｄｃｒ的降解速率呈现先快后慢的趋势,根据形成的动态变化曲线,建立了 Ｃ Ｏ Ｄｃｒ在植物床内沿程动态变化模型： Ｃ Ｌ＝ Ｃｏｅｘｐ（４６２９×１０－ ５ Ｌ２－ ００１５６７ Ｌ,０≤ Ｌ≤１００）。经验证,模型预测值与实际监测值呈非常显著相关（ｄｆ＝ ４,ｒ≥０９９４６＞ ｒ００００５（４）,ｒ００００５（４）＝ ０９７４１）。     

新疆艾比湖周边居民湿地生态系统健康保护意识调查分析

采用问卷调查的方法,试图真实反映艾比湖周边居民对艾比湖湿地生态系统退化的认知及对艾比湖湿地生态系统健康保护意识的强弱.结果表明：（1）艾比湖周边居民对湿地生态系统退化带来的危害有较为清晰地认识,99％被调查者意识到了艾比湖湿地生态系统退化对周边环境会带来不同程度的危害,78.2％调查对象认为艾比湖湿地生态系统的退化主要是由人类活动引发的,通过正规渠道获取艾比湖湿地生态系统退化信息不够通畅;（2）调查对象对艾比湖湿地生态系统退化情况持有较高的关注度,但支持度不高,85.6％的被调查者对退化湿地的生态恢复有支付意愿;（3）65.5％调查对象对艾比湖湿地生态恢复有信心,但对当地政府宣传和保护艾比湖湿地的力度满意度不高,因此政府部门还需进一步加强对艾比湖的宣传和保护力度.     

Modeling estuarine-shelf exchanges in a deltaic estuary: Implications for coastal carbon budgets and hypoxia

The export of wetland-derived materials to the coastal ocean (i.e., the “Outwelling” hypothesis) has received considerable attention over the past several decades. While a number of studies have shown that estuaries export appreciable amounts of nutrients and carbon, few studies have attempted to estimate the importance of estuarine sources for the coastal carbon budgets in river-dominated coastal ecosystems. A novel tidal prism model was developed to examine estuarine-shelf exchanges in the Barataria estuary, a deltaic estuary located in the north-central Gulf of Mexico. This estuary has been the site of a massive wetland loss, and it has been hypothesized that carbon export from the eroding coastal wetlands supports the development of a large hypoxic zone in the coastal Gulf of Mexico. The model results show that the Barataria estuary receives nitrogen through the tidal passes and releases carbon to the coastal ocean. The mean calculated tidal water discharge of 6930 m³ s⁻¹ is equivalent to about 43% of the lower Mississippi River discharge. The annual total organic carbon (TOC) export is 109 million kg, or 57 gC m² yr⁻¹ when prorated to the total water area of the estuary. This carbon export is equivalent to a loss of 0.5 m of wetland soil horizon over an area of 8.4 km², and accounts for about 34% of the observed annual wetland loss in the estuary between 1978 and 2000. Compared to the lower Mississippi River, the Barataria estuary appears to be a very small source of TOC for the northern Gulf of Mexico (2.7% of riverine TOC), and is unlikely to have a significant influence on the development of the Gulf's hypoxia.     

Fish population dynamics in a seasonally varying wetland

Small fishes in seasonally flooded environments such as the Everglades are capable of spreading into newly flooded areas and building up substantial biomass. Passive drift cannot account for the rapidity of observed population expansions. To test the ‘reaction-diffusion’ mechanism for spread of the fish, we estimated their diffusion coefficient and applied a reaction-diffusion model. This mechanism was also too weak to account for the spatial dynamics. Two other hypotheses were tested through modeling. The first—the ‘refuge mechanism’—hypothesizes that small remnant populations of small fishes survive the dry season in small permanent bodies of water (refugia), sites where the water level is otherwise below the surface. The second mechanism, which we call the ‘dynamic ideal free distribution mechanism’ is that consumption by the fish creates a prey density gradient and that fish taxis along this gradient can lead to rapid population expansion in space. We examined the two alternatives and concluded that although refugia may play an important role in recolonization by the fish population during reflooding, only the second, taxis in the direction of the flooding front, seems capable of matching empirical observations. This study has important implications for management of wetlands, as fish biomass is an essential support of higher trophic levels.