[Studies on seasonal variation and sources of nitrogen and phosphorus in a canyon reservoir used as water source]
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Updated: May 5, 2026

Continuous Instream Monitoring of Nutrients and Sediment in Agricultural Watersheds
Published on: September 26, 2017
Ting-lin Huang1, Chang-hai Qin, Xuan Li
1Key Laboratory of Northwest Water Resource, Environment and Ecology, Ministry of Education, School of Environmental and Municipal Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an 710055, China. huangtinglin@xauat.edu.cn
Abstract:
According to a continuous survey on Shibianyu Reservoir located north of the Qinling Mountains which lasted for about one and a half years and a simulation study in laboratory, conclusions were drawn as follows. The average concentrations of total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) were 2. 67 mg x L(-1) and 0.04 mg x L(-1), respectively, and the highest values were recorded in the high flow period followed by the median water period, while the lowest values were found in the dry period. The reservoir was in severe eutrophication and the content of chlorophyll a and algal cell density reached 50 mg x m(-3) and 10,000 x 10(4) cells x L(-1), respectively. The yearly input and output of TN was respectively 203.1 t and 181.3 t, while the yearly input and output of TP was respectively 4. 2 t and 4.1 t. Exogenous pollution accounted for more than 90% of the total load. The sediment in reservoir showed an accumulation tendency all year round and the net annual accumulation of TN and TP was 20.2 t and 0. 8 t, respectively. The key of controlling reservoir pollution is to control the endogenous pollution.
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