Manipulating nutrient limitation using modified local soils: A case study at Lake Taihu (China)

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Wang, L., Pan, G. ORCID: 0000-0003-0920-3018, Shi, W., Wang, Z. and Zhang, H., 2016. Manipulating nutrient limitation using modified local soils: A case study at Lake Taihu (China). Water Research, 101, pp. 25-35. ISSN 0043-1354

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Official URL: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2016.05.055

Abstract

The effect of geo-engineering materials of chitosan modified local soil (MLS) on nutrient limitation was studied in comparable whole ponds in Lake Taihu in October 2013. After 20 kg MLS were sprayed onto the whole water pond (400 m2), the chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentration was decreased from 42 to 18 µg L-1 within 2 hours and remained below 20 µg L-1 in the following 15 months, while the average Chl-a was 36 µg L-1 in the control pond throughout the experiment. In situ nutrient addition bioassay experiments indicated that the nutrient limitation was shifted from nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) co-limitation to P limitation after MLS treatment from October 2013 to March 2014 compared to the control pond. In the cyanobacterial bloom season of June 2014, N and P co-limitation remained and N was the primary limiting nutrient and P was a secondary one in the control pond, because phytoplankton biomass (as Chl-a) showed significant increase by N addition and further increase by N+P additions, while both N and P became the limiting nutrient for phytoplankton growth on the basis that only combining N and P additions showed significant Chl-a stimulation in the treatment pond. In the next summer (June 2014), a cyanobacteria-dominated state still remained in the control pond but chlorophytes, bacillariophytes and cyanophytes distributed equally and submerged vegetation was largely restored in the treatment pond. Meanwhile, the upper limiting concentration of DIN was enhanced from 0.8 to 1.5 mg L-1 and SRP from 0.1 to 0.3 mg L-1 compared to the control pond. This study indicates that nutrient limitation can be manipulated by using MLS technology.

Item Type:

Journal article

Publication Title:

Water Research

Creators:

Wang, L., Pan, G., Shi, W., Wang, Z. and Zhang, H.

Publisher:

IWA Publishing

Date:

15 September 2016

Volume:

101