Abstract
We assessed the prevalence and causes of sediment phosphorus (P) release within urban stormwater ponds, a process that may reduce P removal by sedimentation. Data collected from surface water of 98 urban stormwater ponds in Minnesota showed that nearly 40% had median summer total P concentrations in excess of average stormwater runoff (0.38 mg L−1), implying effects of internal loading. We sampled seven ponds more intensively and found four were strongly stratified with persistent hypolimnetic anoxia, despite mean depths <2 m. Sediment core incubations revealed that, unlike in most lakes, both labile organic P (NaOH minus persulfate extractions) and redox-sensitive P (NH4Cl and Na2S2O4 extractions) contribute to P release. Together, these analyses suggest P accumulated in stormwater ponds is highly susceptible to internal release and potentially contributes to downstream eutrophication. Understanding how frequently these conditions occur and how they affect different P forms is vital to improving pond design and management.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 322-330 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Limnology And Oceanography Letters |
Volume | 5 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Aug 2020 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2020 The Authors. Limnology and Oceanography Letters published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography.