Modelling phosphorus dynamics in multi-branch river systems: a study of the Black River, Lake Simcoe, Ontario, Canada.

High rates of nutrient loading from agricultural and urban development have resulted in surface water eutrophication and groundwater contamination in regions of Ontario. In Lake Simcoe (Ontario, Canada), anthropogenic nutrient contributions have contributed to increased algal growth, low hypolimnetic oxygen concentrations, and impaired fish reproduction. An ambitious programme has been initiated to reduce phosphorus loads to the lake, aiming to achieve at least a 40% reduction in phosphorus loads by 2045. Achievement of this target necessitates effective remediation strategies, which will rely upon an improved understanding of controls on nutrient export from tributaries of Lake Simcoe as well as improved understanding of the importance of phosphorus cycling within the lake. In this paper, we describe a new model structure for the integrated dynamic and process-based model INCA-P, which allows fully-distributed applications, suited to branched river networks. We demonstrate application of this model to the Black River, a tributary of Lake Simcoe, and use INCA-P to simulate the fluxes of P entering the lake system, apportion phosphorus among different sources in the catchment, and explore future scenarios of land-use change and nutrient management to identify high priority sites for implementation of watershed best management practises.

Laboratory assessment of factors affecting soil clogging of soil aquifer treatment systems.

In this study the effect of soil type, level of pre-treatment, ponding depth, temperature and sunlight on clogging of soil aquifer treatment (SAT) systems was evaluated over an eight week duration in constant temperature and glasshouse environments. Of the two soil types tested, the more permeable sand media clogged more than the loam, but still retained an order of magnitude higher absolute permeability. A 6- to 8-fold difference in hydraulic loading rates was observed between the four source water types tested (one potable water and three recycled waters), with improved water quality resulting in significantly higher infiltration. Infiltration rates for ponding depths of 30 cm and 50 cm were higher than 10 cm, although for 50 cm clogging rates were higher due to greater compaction of the clogging layer. Overall, physical clogging was more significant than other forms of clogging. Microbial clogging becomes increasingly important when the particulate concentrations in the source waters are reduced through pre-treatment and for finer textured soils due to the higher specific surface area of the media. Clogging by gas binding took place in the glasshouse but not in the lab, and mechanical clogging associated with particle rearrangement was evident in the sand media but not in the loam. These results offer insight into the soil, water quality and operating conditions needed to achieve viable SAT systems.