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The Contribution of Groundwater Discharge to Nutrient Exports from a Coastal Catchment: Post-Flood Seepage Increases Estuarine N/P Ratios

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Abstract

Four months of daily nutrient and radon (a natural groundwater tracer) observations at the outlet of a heavily drained coastal wetland illustrated how episodic floods and diffuse groundwater seepage influence the biogeochemistry of a sub-tropical estuary (Richmond River, New South Wales, Australia). Our observations downstream of the Tuckean Swamp (an acid sulphate soil floodplain) covered a dry stage, a flood triggered by a 213-mm rain event and a post-flood stage when surface water chemistry was dominated by groundwater discharge. Significant correlations were found between radon and ammonium and N/P ratios and between radon and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) during the post-flood stage. While the flood lasted for 14 % of the time of the surface water time series, it accounted for 18 % of NH4, 32 % of NO x , 66 % of DON, 58 % of PO4 and 55 % of dissolved organic phosphorus (DOP) catchment exports. Over the 4-month study period, groundwater fluxes of 35.0, 3.6, 36.3, 0.5 and 0.7 mmol m−2 day−1 for NH4, NO x , DON, PO4 and DOP, respectively, were estimated. The groundwater contribution to the total surface water catchment exports was nearly 100 % for ammonium, and <20 % for the other nutrients. Post-flood groundwater seepage shifted the system from a DON to a dissolved inorganic N-dominated system and doubled N/P ratios in surface waters. We hypothesise that the Richmond River Estuary N/P ratios may reflect a widespread trend of tidal rivers and estuaries becoming more groundwater-dominated and phosphorus-limited as coastal wetlands are drained for agriculture, grazing and development.

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Acknowledgements

This project was supported by a Hermon Slade Foundation grant and ARC Grants (LP110200975 and DP120101645). We thank Dirk Erler, Damien Maher, Maria Matthes and local residents for assistance during field work. Bruce Heynatz kindly allowed us to deploy a radon monitor from his property, collected the long-term time series nutrient samples, and provided valuable guidance. The Richmond River County Council supplied long term pH data. Iain Alexander skillfully ran nutrient samples.

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  1. Centre for Coastal Biogeochemistry, School of Environment, Science and Engineering, Southern Cross University, PO Box 157, Lismore, NSW, 2480, Australia

    Isaac R. Santos, Jason de Weys, Douglas R. Tait & Bradley D. Eyre

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  1. Isaac R. Santos
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  2. Jason de Weys
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Correspondence to Isaac R. Santos.

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Table 4 Nutrient concentrations in all groundwater samples
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Santos, I.R., de Weys, J., Tait, D.R. et al. The Contribution of Groundwater Discharge to Nutrient Exports from a Coastal Catchment: Post-Flood Seepage Increases Estuarine N/P Ratios. Estuaries and Coasts 36, 56–73 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-012-9561-4

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