首页|Does a hydropower reservoir cascade really harm downstream nutrient regimes

Does a hydropower reservoir cascade really harm downstream nutrient regimes

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River damming is believed to largely intercept nutrients,particularly retain more phosphorus(P)than nitrogen(N),and thus harm primary productivity,fishery catches,and food security downstream,which seriously constrain global hydropower development and poverty relief in undeveloped regions and can drive geo-political disputes between nations along trans-boundary rivers.In this study,we investigated whether reservoirs can instead improve nutrient regimes downstream.We measured different species of N and P as well as microbial functions in water and sediment of cascade reservoirs in the upper Mekong River over 5 years and modelled the influx and outflux of N and P species in each reservoir.Despite par-tially retaining total N and total P,reservoirs increased the downstream flux of ammonium and soluble reactive phosphorus(SRP).The increase in ammonium and SRP between outflux and influx showed pos-itive linear relationships with the hydraulic residence time of the cascade reservoirs;and the ratio of SRP to dissolved inorganic nitrogen increased along the reservoir cascade.The lentic environment of reser-voirs stimulated algae-mediated conversion of nitrate into ammonium in surface water;the hypoxic con-dition and the priming effect of algae-induced organic matter enhanced release of ammonium from sediment;the synergy of microbial phosphorylation,reductive condition and sediment geochemical properties increased release of SRP.This study is the first to provide solid evidence that hydropower reservoirs improve downstream nutrient bioavailability and N-P balance through a process of retention-transformation-transport,which may benefit primary productivity.These findings could advance our understanding of the eco-environmental impacts of river damming.

River dammingBiogeochemical cycleNitrogenPhosphorusEcological impacts

Qiuwen Chen、Yuchen Chen、Yuqing Lin、Jianyun Zhang、Jinren Ni、Jun Xia、Lin Xiao、Tao Feng、Honghai Ma

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State Key Laboratory of Hydrology-Water Resources & Hydraulic Engineering,Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute,Nanjing 210029,China

Center for Eco-Environment Research,Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute,Nanjing 210029,China

Yangtze Institute for Conservation and Green Development,Nanjing 210024,China

School of the Environment,Nanjing University,Nanjing 210008,China

The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences,Ministry of Education,Peking University,Beijing 100091,China

State Key Laboratory of Water Resources and Hydropower Engineering Sciences,Wuhan University,Wuhan 430072,China

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National Key Program of Science and Technology国家自然科学基金国家自然科学基金XPLORER Prize

2022YFC32039005212100692047303

2024

10.1016/j.scib.2024.01.007

科学通报(英文版)
中国科学院

科学通报(英文版)

CSTPCD
ISSN：1001-6538
年,卷(期)：2024.69(5)
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