Storage capacity and releasing risk assessment of phosphorus in soils
from restored wetland in the Yellow River Delta, China
Abstract
The application of wastewater is a method used for the restoration of
degraded wetlands in the Yellow River Delta (YRD). However, the
sediments may become a secondary pollution source, when P is saturated
in the restoration process. By means of the diffusive gradient in
thin-film (DGT) technology and modified sequential fraction method, the
present study investigated the phosphorus (P) storage capacity and
release potential of the wetland after 9 years of restoration. The
results showed that the concentration of total P (P t)
ranged from 578.3 to 678.8 mg kg -1 in soils. The
highest fraction of P was Dil.HCl-Pi (mean,74.1-78.7%),whereas the
lowest was NaHCO 3-Pi (mean, 0.4-1.3%). Each form of P
in the soil basically decreased with depth and accumulated more in the
0-40 cm profile. The concentrations of soluble reactive P (SRP) in the
overlying water were higher than those in the interstitial water. The
critical P concentration of the wetland sink-source conversion was 0.52
mg L -1. These results showed that each form of P
showed a vertical decrease with depth in the soil column.
Significant differences were observed
among the average concentrations of P t as well as the P
i values at each site. The concentrations of P
t and P i in site A were significant
higher than those in other sites. SRP showed no obvious difference in
overlying water and interstitial water with seasonal changes. The
P-retention capacity of the wetland was quantitatively evaluated using
PSI and DPS parameters. The wetland still had sink capacity after 9
years of wastewater restoration. This research enriches theories of
domestic wastewater remediation in wetlands and provides an important
theoretical basis for using domestic wastewater to repair degraded
wetlands in the YRD.