Seasonal variation of nitrogen-concentration in the surface water and its relationship with land use in a catchment of northern China.
Surface waters can be contaminated by human activities in two ways: (1) by point sources, such as sewage treatment discharge and storm-water runoff; and (2) by non-point sources, such as runoff from urban and agricultural areas. With point-source pollution effectively controlled, non-point source pollution has become the most important environmental concern in the world. The formation of non-point source pollution is related to both the sources such as soil nutrient, the amount of fertilizer and pesticide applied, the amount of refuse, and the spatial complex combination of land uses within a heterogeneous landscape. Land-use change, dominated by human activities, has a significant impact on water resources and quality. In this study, fifteen surface water monitoring points in the Yuqiao Reservoir Basin, Zunhua, Hebei Province, northern China, were chosen to study the seasonal variation of nitrogen concentration in the surface water. Water samples were collected in low-flow period (June), high-flow period (July) and mean-flow period (October) from 1999 to 2000. The results indicated that the seasonal variation of nitrogen concentration in the surface water among the fifteen monitoring points in the rainfall-rich year is more complex than that in the rainfall-deficit year. It was found that the land use, the characteristics of the surface river system, rainfall, and human activities play an important role in the seasonal variation of N-concentration in surface water.
Chen
Li-ding
LD
Research Center For Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China. Liding@mail.rcees.ac.cn
Peng
Hong-jia
HJ
Fu
Bo-Jie
BJ
Qiu
Jun
J
Zhang
Shu-rong
SR
D002681:China; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005618:Fresh Water / Q000737:chemistry*; D017672:Nitrogen Compounds / Q000032:analysis*; D011891:Rain; D012621:Seasons; D013053:Spectrophotometry; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
D017672:Nitrogen Compounds; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical