Effects of desiccation on the self-purification capacity of headwater streams: Consequences for the stream management
Abstract
Water scarcity and drought impair the self-purification capacity of streams and may result in water quality deterioration. The study aims to a) investigate the effects of drought on the self-purification capacity and the water quality of streams, b) identify factors which determine the resilience of stream processes to drought, c) model potential consequences of drought for selected reaches, and d) develop a guideline for water management authorities to assess the risks of water quality deterioration due to drought. We will investigate drought effects on the water quality and the self-purification of streams via both field sampling and lab experiments. In 2018-19, intermittent streams in Lower Austria, Carinthia and Burgenland will be sampled before, during, and after the drought for nutrients and organic matter in the stream water, and for the biomass and activity of biofilms in the sediments. We will perform nutrient addition experiments to calculate nutrient uptake during different phases of drying. In the lab, we will determine the effects of drying on the nutrient uptake via experimental flumes and sediment perfusion cores. For three reaches, we will combine uptake rates with the results of 2D hydrodynamic models (RSim-2D) to estimate the potential consequences of drought in dependence of discharge. In addition, we will identify factors which determine the vulnerability of streams to drought and we will develop a guideline which supports stream managers in the management of intermittent streams.
Publikationen
Project staff
Gabriele Weigelhofer
Assoc. Prof. Priv.-Doz. Mag. Dr. Gabriele Weigelhofer
gabriele.weigelhofer@boku.ac.at
Tel: +43 1 47654-81242
BOKU Project Leader
01.04.2018 - 31.03.2021