The spatial and temporal dynamics of sediment phosphorus attenuation and release in impacted stream catchments

Sediments can attenuate phosphorus (P) from overlying water and reduce trophic status in zero and first order ditches and streams. These features can be considered as intermediate mitigation features between P mobilised from land, and onward delivery to river systems, if the risk of chemical P release from sediments is minimal. However, risk assessments are rarely based on temporal scale dynamics and especially at fine scale in both sediment and water column environments. In this study, in eutrophic stream catchments, bed sediments were tested fortnightly and spatially over one year for EPC0 (to derive phosphate exchange potential-PEP) and for P across a spectrum from labile to recalcitrant fractions. At the same time stream discharge and P concentrations were measured synchronously at high frequency and resolved to 1-hour intervals and indicated high water quality pressures at all flow rates. PEP indicated spatial and temporal changes most likely caused by periods of source disconnection/reconnection and sediment mobilisation during storm events, moving from periods of high attenuation potential to near saturation. Despite these spatial and temporal changes, PEP did not indicate much potential for chemical P release from the sediments (distributing mostly below or close to zero). However, this may be a misleading risk assessment by itself as physical P release, especially of the labile bicarbonate-dithionite (B-D) P fraction of sediments, was a more dominant process mobilised during storm events reducing by up to 84 % during a succession of summer storm events. The total P and total reactive P loads monitored leaving the catchments were coincident with these changes. The specific downstream trophic effects of this episodic P release will need to be assessed in terms of its bioavailability, in combination with other more noted diffuse and point P source processes.

Automated summary

Sediments in ditches and streams can attenuate phosphorus from water, but risk assessments often neglect the temporal and spatial dynamics at fine scales. A study in eutrophic stream catchments found that while the phosphate exchange potential (PEP) in bed sediments showed spatial and temporal changes, it did not indicate a significant risk of chemical phosphorus release. However, labile phosphorus fractions in sediments were released during storm events, impacting the trophic status of the water.