Pschenyckyj Catharine, Donahue Thomas, Kelly-Quinn Mary, O'Driscoll Connie, Renou-Wilson Florence
School of Biology & Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.
Hanley Ryan, Galway, Ireland.
Hydrobiologia. 2023;850(15):3313-3339. doi: 10.1007/s10750-023-05188-5. Epub 2023 Mar 28.
Currently, 50% of Irish rivers do not meet water quality standards, with many declining due to numerous pressures, including peatland degradation. This study examines stream water quality in the Irish midlands, a region where raised bogs have been all historically disturbed to various extent and the majority drained for industrial or domestic peat extraction. For the first time, we provide in-depth analysis of stream water chemistry within a heavily modified bog landscape. Small streams from degraded bogs exhibited greater levels of pollutants, in particular: total dissolved nitrogen (0.48 mg/l) and sulphate (18.49 mg/l) as well as higher electrical conductivity (mean: 334 μS/cm) compared to similar bog streams in near-natural bogs. Except for site-specific nitrogen pollution in certain streams surrounding degraded peatlands, the chemical composition of the receiving streams did not significantly differ between near-natural and degraded sites, reflecting the spatio-temporal scales of disturbance in this complex peat-scape. Dissolved organic carbon concentrations in all the receiving streams were high (27.2 mg/l) compared to other Irish streams, even within other peatland catchments. The region is experiencing overall a widespread loss of fluvial nitrogen and carbon calling for (a) the development of management instruments at site-level (water treatment) and landscape-level (rewetting) to assist with meeting water quality standards in the region, and (b) the routine monitoring of water chemistry as part of current and future peatland management activities.
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10750-023-05188-5.
目前，爱尔兰50%的河流未达到水质标准，许多河流因包括泥炭地退化在内的众多压力而水质下降。本研究考察了爱尔兰中部地区的溪流水质，该地区的高位沼泽在历史上均受到不同程度的干扰，且大部分因工业或家庭泥炭开采而排水。我们首次对经过大幅改造的沼泽景观中的溪流水化学进行了深入分析。与近自然沼泽中类似的沼泽溪流相比，退化沼泽中的小溪污染物含量更高，尤其是：总溶解氮（0.48毫克/升）和硫酸盐（18.49毫克/升），以及更高的电导率（平均：334微西门子/厘米）。除了退化泥炭地周围某些溪流存在特定地点的氮污染外，近自然和退化地点的接纳溪流的化学成分没有显著差异，这反映了这个复杂泥炭景观中干扰的时空尺度。与爱尔兰其他溪流相比，所有接纳溪流中的溶解有机碳浓度都很高（27.2毫克/升），即使在其他泥炭地集水区也是如此。该地区总体上正经历河流氮和碳的广泛流失，这就需要（a）在场地层面（水处理）和景观层面（重新湿润）制定管理手段，以帮助该地区达到水质标准，以及（b）作为当前和未来泥炭地管理活动的一部分，对水化学进行常规监测。
在线版本包含可在10.1007/s10750-023-05188-5获取的补充材料。
