Nitrogen Attenuation in Septic System Plumes     

William D. Robertson  Dale R. Van Stempvoort  Sherry L. Schiff 《Ground water》2021,59(3):369-380

The persistence of inorganic nitrogen is assessed in a set of 21 septic system plumes located in Ontario, Canada, that were studied over a 31-year period from 1988 to 2019. In the plume zones underlying the drainfields, site mean NO₃⁻ values averaged 34 ± 27 mg N/L and exceeded the nitrate drinking water limit (DWL) of 10 mg N/L at 16 of 21 sites. In plume zones extending up to 30 m downgradient from the drainfields, site mean NO₃⁻ values averaged 24 ± 20 mg N/L and exceeded the DWL at 9 of 13 sites. Site mean total inorganic nitrogen (TIN; NH₄⁺ + NO₃⁻ − N) removal averaged 34 ± 26% in the drainfield zones and 36 ± 44% in the downgradient plume zones, indicating that much of the removal occurred within the drainfields. Removal was much higher at nine sites where drainfield TIN included >10% NH₄⁺ (62 ± 25% removal). TIN removal was not correlated with wastewater loading rate, system age, or sediment carbonate mineral content, but was correlated with water table depth, where shallower water table sites had generally less complete wastewater oxidation. At many of these sites, both NO₃⁻ and NH₄⁺ were present together in the plumes and were lost concomitantly, suggesting that the anammox reaction was making an important contribution to the observed TIN loss. When groundwater nitrate contamination is a concern, considering on-site treatment system designs that lead to a lesser degree of wastewater oxidation, could be a useful approach for enhancing N removal.  相似文献   

Impact of tributary DOM and nutrient inputs on the nearshore ecology of a large, oligotrophic lake (Georgian Bay, Lake Huron, Canada)   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Serghei A. Bocaniov  David R. Barton  Sherry L. Schiff  Ralph E. H. Smith 《Aquatic Sciences - Research Across Boundaries》2013,75(2):321-332

Two adjacent bays in a large oligotrophic lake (Georgian Bay, Lake Huron) were compared to determine how the inputs from relatively pristine, but moderately humic, tributaries may influence phytoplankton, nutrients and system metabolism. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations decreased from 4 to 5 gC m^?3 at inner sites to 2 gC m^?3 or less at outer sites. The concentration gradient from inner to outer was greater in the bay with a major tributary, and optical properties (intensity and slope of light absorption spectrum) showed there was a loss of material with allochthonous characteristics along the gradient. Chlorophyll a (Chl a) and total phosphorus (TP) were also higher at inner (2–4 mg Chl a m^?3 and 8–12 mgP m^?3, respectively) than outer sites (≤1 mg Chl a m^?3 and 4–5 mgP m^?3). Chl a and TP, as well as particulate nutrient ratios (C:P, C:N, N:P), indicated significant eutrophication at inner sites, especially in the bay with the tributary, and there was a strong positive Chl a-phosphorus relationship. The stable oxygen isotope ratio (¹⁸O:¹⁶O) of dissolved oxygen indicated greater influence of biological oxygen fluxes at inner sites (where ratios were 2–3 ppt below atmospheric equilibrium) than at outer sites (where ratios were within 0.5 ppt of equilibrium). Community photosynthesis:respiration ratios inferred from ¹⁸O:¹⁶O varied positively with Chl a and inorganic nutrients, but negatively with DOC. Altered loading of allochthonous organic matter can be expected under changing climate and development scenarios and will have significant influence on optical properties and system metabolism through changes in DOC in this coastal system. The effects will nonetheless be strongly modulated by any accompanying change in inorganic nutrients.  相似文献   

Kinetics of ozone photochemistry     

Schiff  H. I. 《Pure and Applied Geophysics》1973,106(1):1464-1467

Summary The photolysis of ozone in the u.v. Hartley Band produces metastable oxygen atoms and molecules. At wavelengths shorter than 3100 Å the primary quantum yield is probably unity but greater uncertainty exists about its value at longer wavelengths. At 2500 Å, O₂(¹_g) is produced with near unit efficiency and there is some evidence that singlet O₂ is also a primary prduct at the short wavelenght end of the Huggins band. O₂(¹ _g ⁺ ) is not a primary photolytic product at 2500 Å but is produced as a secondary product from the rapid reaction of O(¹D) with ground state O₂. O(¹D) reacts rapidly with O₃ although the nature of the products of this reaction has not been unequivocally established and there is now strong evidence against the occurrence of energy chains in dry ozone. The reaction of O(³P) atoms with O₃ has been found to have an activation energy of 4.4 kcal mole^–1.  相似文献   

The effect of water vapour broadening on methane eddy correlation flux measurements     

F.-J. Lübken  R. Eng  D. R. Karecki  G. I. Mackay  S. Nadler  H. I. Schiff 《Journal of Atmospheric Chemistry》1991,13(1):97-108

A high resolution tunable diode laser absorption spectrometer (TDLAS) was used to measure the broadening effect of water vapor and other gases (dry air, nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen and helium) on three methane lines in the v₄ fundamental. The effects on methane eddy correlation flux measurements amount to a few percent for the least broadened line for expected H₂O fluxes, to 10% for the most broadened line for higher H₂O and lower CH₄ fluxes likely to be encountered. The broadening coefficients of methane measured for air, N₂, O₂, and He are in good agreement with recently published values.  相似文献   

Water quality impacts of stormwater discharges to Santa Monica Bay   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Bay S  Jones BH  Schiff K  Washburn L 《Marine environmental research》2003,56(1-2):205-223

Urban stormwater runoff is a major source of contaminants to southern California's coastal waters, yet little is known about the fate and effects of these discharges. A 3-year multidisciplinary project was conducted to investigate the dispersion of stormwater plumes in Santa Monica Bay and the resultant impacts on the water column and benthos. This paper describes the toxicity component of the study. Sea urchin fertilization toxicity tests were conducted on stormwater from the two largest discharges into the bay: Ballona Creek, which drains a highly urbanized watershed, and Malibu Creek, which receives runoff from a largely undeveloped watershed. Every sample of Ballona Creek stormwater tested was toxic (usually >5 toxic units), while Malibu Creek stormwater had a lower frequency and magnitude of toxicity (usually <4 toxic units). Surface water samples collected within the Ballona Creek stormwater discharge plume were always toxic whenever the concentration of stormwater in the plume exceeded 10%. The toxic portion of the Ballona Creek stormwater plume extended more than 4 km offshore on one occasion. Toxicity identification studies indicated that zinc was the primary cause of toxicity in both Ballona Creek stormwater and the discharge plume. No acute sediment toxicity (10-day amphipod survival) was present in the study area, although interstitial water toxicity was present at some stations located near the mouth of Ballona Creek. Differences in watershed characteristics likely were responsible for the greater toxicity of the Ballona Creek stormwater discharge plume. The Ballona Creek watershed contained a greater degree of urbanization (83% versus 12% for Malibu Creek) and the presence of a network of concrete flood control channels resulted in a stormwater plume containing elevated concentrations of toxins that received less initial dilution (compared to Malibu Creek) in the nearshore environment.  相似文献   

Mercury in lake sediments of the Precambrian Shield near Huntsville, Ontario, Canada   总被引：10，自引：0，他引：10  

P. E. Rasmussen  D. J. Villard  H. D. Gardner  J. A. C. Fortescue  S. L. Schiff  W. W. Shilts 《Environmental Geology》1998,33(2-3):170-182

 Long sediment cores (>1 m) were collected from eight Precambrian Shield lakes in southern Ontario, Canada and analyzed for mercury (Hg), loss-on-ignition (LOI), and a suite of 36 other elements. Results indicated at least 100-fold variation in sediment Hg concentrations between lakes in close proximity (from 450 ppb), comparable to the variation reported for lakes across the whole of Canada. Strong areal correlations between Hg concentrations and LOI (r ² =0.77), between Hg and other trace element concentrations (Pb, Zn, Cd, Sb, As, Br), and similarities in the vertical concentration profiles of Hg and LOI, all point to the importance of organic matter in the release, transport and redistribution of metals in watershed systems. The spatial pattern of Hg concentrations in deep, precolonial sediments (>20 cm) was found to mirror the pattern of Hg concentrations in modern surface sediments, an observation that was confirmed in a follow-up survey (r ² =0.85;n=25 lakes), indicating that natural processes govern the unequal distribution of Hg among these lakes. Between-lake differences in surface sediment Hg concentrations normalized to organic carbon (Hg/C) were also reflected by Hg concentrations in smallmouth bass normalized to 35 cm length (R ² =0.63;n=15 lakes). The latter relationship suggests that smallmouth bass and lake sediment indicators provide mutually supportive information regarding Hg loading to the lacustrine environment from geological sources in the watershed system. Received: 31 October 1996 · Accepted: 27 May 1997  相似文献   

Examining the fate of WWTP effluent nitrogen using δ 15N–NH4 +, δ 15N–NO 3 − and δ 15N of submersed macrophytes     

Jennifer L. A. Hood  William D. Taylor  Sherry L. Schiff 《Aquatic Sciences - Research Across Boundaries》2014,76(2):243-258

The use of submersed macrophyte tissue δ ¹⁵N to quantify the level of WWTP effluent use in a highly urbanized and agricultural river was evaluated using several methods. Macrophytes, NH₄ ⁺ and NO₃ ^? were collected by canoe along two 10 km reaches of river, upstream and downstream of two major municipal WWTPs over 3 years. NH₄ ⁺ decreased in concentration while δ ¹⁵N–NH₄ ⁺ increased as a function of distance downstream of both WWTPs, changing in one survey from 13 to 31 ‰ over 1 km. This increase is attributed to the combined effects of volatilization, nitrification and uptake. While NO ₃ ^? concentrations increased downstream of the WWTP over one of the survey reaches, δ ¹⁵N–NO ₃ ^? showed no prominent trend with distance at either. Macrophyte tissue δ ¹⁵N increased with distance downstream of both WWTPs, with a slope not significantly different from that of δ ¹⁵N–NH₄ ⁺ suggesting that macrophytes incorporate effluent NH₄ ⁺ as their main N source in those areas. However, mixing models suggest that towards the end of the reach, where source separation is distinct, macrophytes may utilize background NO ₃ ^? . Our study indicates the difficulty of deriving precise estimates of effluent use by macrophytes in a system where the δ ¹⁵N of the effluent changes rapidly. It also illustrates the utility of macrophytes in describing those changes where the effluent is too attenuated to allow for direct isotopic analysis.  相似文献   

Benthic macrofaunal community condition in the Southern California Bight, 1994-2003     

J. Ananda Ranasinghe  Kenneth C. Schiff  Tim K. Mikel  Ronald G. Velarde 《Marine pollution bulletin》2010,60(6):827-833

To assess benthic macrofaunal community condition in Southern California, 838 sites were sampled using spatially random designs in 1994, 1998, or 2003. Benthic community condition was assessed on a four-category scale and the area in each category estimated. Overall, benthic macrofauna in Southern California were in good condition during 2003, with 98% of the area in reference condition or deviating only marginally. There was no evidence of disturbance near Channel Islands or small wastewater discharges, and virtually none on the mainland shelf. In contrast, bay and estuary macrofaunal communities were more frequently disturbed with nearly 13% of the area supporting disturbed benthos. The condition of the mainland shelf did not change substantially over the 9-year period, with 1.6-2.8% of the area in poor benthic condition. Southern California benthic condition evaluations may be improved by extending the depth and salinity ranges of assessment tools, and improving trend detection methods.  相似文献   

Nutrient attenuation in a shallow,gravel-bed river. I. In-situ chamber experiments     

John M. Quinn  Sherry J. Schiff 《新西兰海洋与淡水研究杂志》2020,54(3):393-409

ABSTRACT

Dissolved nutrient uptake and metabolism by periphyton in a central North Island gravel-bed river were investigated using recirculating in-situ chambers. Dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) uptake was correlated with photosynthesis and chlorophyll but N uptake and carbon fixation were partly de-coupled indicating storage. Dissolved reactive phosphorus (DRP) uptake was only weakly correlated with photosynthesis. Diatoms and green algae relied on DRP in the water, but Cyanobacteria met part of their P needs from storage. Dissolved organic nutrients were excreted in both light and dark incubations, with approximately 50% of DIN uptake during photosynthesis excreted as DON. To simulate diurnal variations in nutrients, oxygen and pH existing computer models need to de-couple photosynthesis from nutrient uptake, allow for variable stoichiometry and better quantify recycling of organic nutrients.  相似文献