Assessing biological and chemical signatures related to nutrient removal by floating islands in stormwater mesocosms

    Authors

    N. B. Chang; K. Islam; Z. Marimon;M. P. Wanielista

    Comments

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    Abbreviated Journal Title

    Chemosphere

    Keywords

    Floating treatment wetland; Mesocosm; Nutrient removal; Nutrient; aggregation; Stormwater management; ANGIOSPERM-EPIPHYTE COMPLEXES; LITTORAL SYSTEMS; ORGANIC-CARBON; WETLANDS; EXCHANGE; Environmental Sciences

    Abstract

    Aquatic floating plants on BioHaven mats were tested for their potential use as a Best Management Practice to be incorporated within existing stormwater detention ponds. Plants were analyzed for their capability to remove nutrient-pollution in parallel with the study of ecological dynamics. Experiments were carried out in cylindrical mesocosms of 5 m diameter and 1.2 m height, above-ground pools with a water volume of 14 m(3). The design parameters tested were for 5% and 10% vegetated floating island coverage of the mesocosm, both with and without shoreline plants called littoral zone. This littoral shelf was 0.5 m thick, graded at a downward slope of 1:5 toward the center using loamy soil with low organic matter content, excavated from below turf grass. Endemic plant species were chosen for the experimental location in central Florida based on a wetland identification manual by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to ensure the study was not compromised by unique climate requirements of the plants. Nutrient and aquatic chemical conditions such as pH, dissolved oxygen, temperature, turbidity, and chlorophyll a were monitored to understand their relationships to the general wetland ecosystem. Real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis identified the microbial activity near the rhizospheric zone. Logistical placement considerations were made using spatial sampling across the horizontal plane of the mesocosms, beneath and around the root zone, to determine if nutrients tend to aggregate around the floating island. This study concluded that the application of floating islands as a stormwater technology can remove nutrients through plant uptake and biological activity. The most cost-effective size in the outdoor mesocosms was 5% surface area coverage of the mat. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

    Journal Title

    Chemosphere

    Volume

    88

    Issue/Number

    6

    Publication Date

    1-1-2012

    Document Type

    Article

    Language

    English

    First Page

    736

    Last Page

    743

    WOS Identifier

    WOS:000305729100011

    ISSN

    0045-6535

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