Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Effects of relic low-head dams on stream denitrification potential: seasonality and biogeochemical controls

  • Research Article
  • Published:
Aquatic Sciences Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The majority of dams in the contiguous United States are small, low-head dams that are no longer operational but can influence the water quality of contemporary stream ecosystems. Potential effects of low-head dams on stream nitrogen removal (denitrification) have been rarely quantified, and yet they can be an important part of the decision-making process of removing low-head dams. Here, we provide novel empirical data on potential denitrification rates and their biogeochemical controls above and below two mid-Atlantic low-head dams over a 2-year period. Our results show that low-head dams did not increase streambed potential denitrification in comparison to dam-free sections in the same rivers. In our study sites, potential denitrification above low-head dams was generally low (15.7 ± 3.5 µg N [kg sediment]−1 h−1) despite recurring events of water hypoxia (< 50% dissolved oxygen saturation) and high NO3− and DOC concentrations. Overall, we observed higher potential denitrification during winter samplings (9.2 and 50.1 µg N [kg sediment]−1 h−1 on average) and significant effects of sediment surface area and organic matter content on potential denitrification rates above the dams. Results from this study suggest limited effects of relic low-head dams on nitrogen removal and transport in stream ecosystems, and can contribute to the decision-making process of removing low-head dams.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9

Similar content being viewed by others

Explore related subjects

Discover the latest articles, news and stories from top researchers in related subjects.

Availability of data and materials

The datasets generated and analyzed in this study are available in the following Github repository https://github.com/mpstroud/Hripto2022_data.

References

  • APHA (2006) Standard methods for examination of water and wastewater, 21st edn. American Public Health Association, Washington

    Google Scholar 

  • Barbarossa V, Schmitt RJP, Huijbregts MAJ, Zarfl C, King H, Schipper AM (2020) Impacts of current and future large dams on the geographic range connectivity of freshwater fish worldwide. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 117:3648–3655

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Beaulieu JJ, Tank JL, Hamilton SK, Wollheim WM, Hall RO, Mulholland PJ, Peterson BJ, Ashkenas LR, Cooper LW, Dahm CN, Dodds WK, Grimm NB, Johnson SL, McDowell WH, Poole GC, Valett HM, Arango CP, Bernot MJ, Burgin AJ, Crenshaw CL, Helton AM, Johnson LT, O’Brien JM, Potter JD, Sheibley RW, Sobota DJ, Thomas SM (2011) Nitrous oxide emission from denitrification in stream and river networks. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 108:214–219

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Blaszczak JR, Delesantro JM, Urban DL, Doyle MW, Bernhardt ES (2019) Scoured or suffocated: urban stream ecosystems oscillate between hydrologic and dissolved oxygen extremes. Limnol Oceanogr 64:877–894

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Brewitt PK, Colwyn CLM (2020) Little dams, big problems: The legal and policy issues of nonjurisdictional dams. Wiley Interdiscip Rev Water. https://doi.org/10.1002/wat2.1393

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burgin AJ, Hamilton SK (2007) Have we overemphasized the role of denitrification in aquatic ecosystems? A review of nitrate removal pathways. Front Ecol Environ 5:89–96

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Casserly CM, Turner JN, O’Sullivan JJ, Bruen M, Bullock C, Atkinson S, Kelly-Quinn M (2020) Impact of low-head dams on bedload transport rates in coarse-bedded streams. Sci Tot Environ 716:136908

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Carter AM, Blaszczak JR, Heffernan JB, Bernhardt ES (2021) Hypoxia dynamics and spatial distribution in a low gradient river. Limnol Oceanogr 66:2251–2265

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Comer-Warner SA, Gooddy DC, Ullah S, Glover L, Kettridge N, Wexler SK, Kaiser J, Krause S (2020) Seasonal variability of sediment controls of nitrogen cycling in an agricultural stream. Biogeochemistry 148:31–48

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Csiki SJC, Rhoads BL (2014) Influence of four run-of-river dams on channel morphology and sediment characteristics in Illinois, USA. Geomorphology 206:215–229

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • David MB, Wall LG, Royer TV, Tank JL (2006) Denitrification and the nitrogen budget of a reservoir in an agricultural landscape. Ecol Appl 16:2177–2190

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dodds WK, Burgin AJ, Marcarelli AM, Strauss EA (2017) Nitrogen transformations. In: Hauer R, Lamberti GA (eds) Methods in stream ecology. Elsevier, San Diego

    Google Scholar 

  • Doyle MW, Stanley EH, Orr CH, Selle AR, Sethi SA, Harbor JM (2005) Stream ecosystem response to small dam removal: lessons from the Heartland. Geomorphology 71:227–244

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dutton CL, Subalusky AL, Hamilton SK, Rosi EJ, Post DM (2018) Organic matter loading by hippopotami causes subsidy overload resulting in downstream hypoxia and fish kills. Nat Commun. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-04391-6

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Fencl JS, Mather ME, Costigan KH, Daniels MD (2015) How big of an effect do small dams have? Using geomorphological footprints to quantify spatial impact of low-head dams and identify patterns of across-dam variation. PLoS ONE. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0141210

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Findlay S, Tank J, Dye S, Valett HM, Mulholland PJ, McDowell WH, Johnson SL, Hamilton SK, Edmonds J, Dodds WK, Bowden WB (2002) A cross-system comparison of bacterial and fungal biomass in detritus pools of headwater streams. Microb Ecol 43:55–66

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Garcia-Ruiz R, Pattinson SN, Whitton BA (1998) Denitrification in river sediments: relationship between process rate and properties of water and sediment. Freshw Biol 39:467–476

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gillette DP, Tiemann JS, Edds DR, Wildhaber ML (2005) Spatiotemporal patterns of fish assemblage structure in a river impounded by low-head dams. Copeia 2005:539–549

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gold AJ, Addy K, Morrison A, Simpson M (2016) Will dam removal increase nitrogen flux to estuaries? Water 8:522

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gómez-Gener Ll, Gubau M, von Schiller D, Marcé R, Obrador B (2018) Effect of small water retention structures on diffusive CO2 and CH4 emissions along a highly impounded river. Inland Waters 8: 449–460

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Groffman PM, Tiedje JM (1989) Denitrification in north temperate forest soils-spatial and temporal patterns at the landscape and seasonal scales. Soil Biol Biochem 21:613–620

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Groffman PM, Dorsey AM, Mayer PM (2005) N processing within geomorphic structures in urban streams. J N Am Benthol Soc 24:613–625

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Groffman PM, Altabet MA, Bohlke JK, Butterbach-Bahl K, David MB, Firestone MK, Giblin AE, Kana TM, Nielsen LP, Voytek MA (2006) Methods for measuring denitrification: diverse approaches to a difficult problem. Ecol Appl 16:2091–2122

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hall RO, Tank JL, Sobota DJ, Mulholland PJ, O’Brien JM, Dodds WK, Webster JR, Valett HM, Poole GC, Peterson BJ, Meyer JL, McDowell WH, Johnson SL, Hamilton SK, Grimm NB, Gregory SV, Dahm CN, Cooper LW, Ashkenas LR, Thomas SM, Sheibley RW, Potter JD, Niederlehner BR, Johnson LT, Helton AM, Crenshaw CM, Burgin AJ, Bernot MJ, Beaulieu JJ, Arango CP (2009) Nitrate removal in stream ecosystems measured by N-15 addition experiments: Total uptake. Limnol Oceanogr 54:653–665

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Inamdar S, Peipoch M, Gold AJ, Lewis E, Hripto J, Sherman M, Addy K, Merritts D, Kan JJ, Groffman PM, Walter R, Trammell TLE (2021) Ghosts of landuse past: legacy effects of milldams for riparian nitrogen (N) processing and water quality functions. Environ Res Lett 16:035016

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Inwood SE, Tank JL, Bernot MJ (2005) Patterns of denitrification associated with land use in 9 midwestern headwater streams. J N Am Benthol Soc 24:227–245

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Inwood SE, Tank JL, Bernot MJ (2007) Factors controlling sediment denitrification in midwestern streams of varying land use. Microb Ecol 53:247–258

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Jankowski K, Schindler DE, Lisi PJ (2014) Temperature sensitivity of community respiration rates in streams is associated with watershed geomorphic features. Ecology 95:2707–2714

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kemp MJ, Dodds WK (2002) The influence of ammonium, nitrate, and dissolved oxygen concentrations on uptake, nitrification, and denitrification rates associated with prairie stream substrata. Limnol Oceanogr 47:1380–1393

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Korol AR, Noe GB, Ahn C (2019) Controls of the spatial variability of denitrification potential in nontidal floodplains of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, USA. Geoderma 338:14–29

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kreiling RM, Richardson WB, Bartsch LA, Thoms MC, Christensen VG (2019) Denitrification in the river network of a mixed land use watershed: unpacking the complexities. Biogeochemistry 143:327–346

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • La Notte A, Maes J, Dalmazzone S, Crossman ND, Grizzetti B, Bidoglio G (2017) Physical and monetary ecosystem service accounts for Europe: a case study for in-stream nitrogen retention. Ecosyst Serv 23:18–29

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Lazar JG, Addy K, Gold AJ, Groffman PM, McKinney RA, Kellogg DQ (2015) Beaver ponds: resurgent nitrogen sinks for rural watersheds in the Northeastern United States. J Environ Qual 44:1684–1693

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Martin EH, Apse CD (2011) Northeast aquatic connectivity: an assessment of dams on Northeastern Rivers. The Nature Conservancy, Eastern Freshwater Program

  • McKnight DM, Runkel RL, Tate CM, Duff JH, Moorhead DL (2004) Inorganic N and P dynamics of Antarctic glacial meltwater streams as controlled by hyporheic exchange and benthic autotrophic communities. J N Am Benthol Soc 23:171–188

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Merritts D, Walter R, Rahnis M, Cox S, Hartranft J, Scheid C, Potter N, Jenschke M, Reed A, Matuszewski D, Kratz L, Manion L, Shilling A, Datin K (2013) The rise and fall of Mid-Atlantic streams: millpond sedimentation, milldam breaching, channel incision, and stream bank erosion. In: DeGraff JV, Evans JE (eds) Challenges of dam removal and river restoration. Geological Society of America, Boulder, pp 183–203

    Google Scholar 

  • Mulholland PJ, Thomas SA, Valett HM, Webster JR, Beaulieu J (2006) Effects of light on NO3- uptake in small forested streams: diurnal and day-to-day variations. J N Am Benthol Soc 25:583–595

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mulholland PJ, Helton AM, Poole GC, Hall RO, Hamilton SK, Peterson BJ, Tank JL, Ashkenas LR, Cooper LW, Dahm CN, Dodds WK, Findlay SEG, Gregory SV, Grimm NB, Johnson SL, McDowell WH, Meyer JL, Valett HM, Webster JR, Arango CP, Beaulieu JJ, Bernot MJ, Burgin AJ, Crenshaw CL, Johnson LT, Niederlehner BR, O’Brien JM, Potter JD, Sheibley RW, Sobota DJ, Thomas SM (2008) Stream denitrification across biomes and its response to anthropogenic nitrate loading. Nature 452:202-U246

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Murray RE, Knowles R (1999) Chloramphenicol inhibition of denitrifying enzyme activity in two agricultural soils. Appl Environ Microbiol 65:3487–3492

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Nakagawa S, Schielzeth H (2013) A general and simple method for obtaining R2 from generalized linear mixed-effects Models. Methods Ecol Evol 4:133–142

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • NLCD (2011) National land cover dataset. USGS, Reston

    Google Scholar 

  • Opdyke MR, David MB, Rhoads BL (2006) Influence of geomorphological variability in channel characteristics on sediment denitrification in agricultural streams. J Environ Qual 35:2103–2112

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pattinson SN, Garcia-Ruiz R, Whitton BA (1998) Spatial and seasonal variation in denitrification in the Swale-Ouse system, a river continuum. Sci Total Environ 210:289–305

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pearson AJ, Pizzuto J (2015) Bed load transport over run-of-river dams, Delaware, USA. Geomorphology 248:382–395

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pinheiro JC, Bates DM, DebRoy S, Sarkar D, Team RC (2016) Nlme: linear and nonlinear mixed effects models

  • Poff NL, Hart DD (2002) How dams vary and why it matters for the emerging science of dam removal. Bioscience 52:659–668

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Powers SM, Tank JL, Robertson DM (2015) Control of nitrogen and phosphorus transport by reservoirs in agricultural landscapes. Biogeochemistry 124:417–439

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Proia L, von Schiller D, Gutiérrez C, Casas-Ruiz JP, Gómez-Gener L, Marcé R, Obrador B, Acuña V, Sabater S (2016) Microbial carbon processing along a river discontinuum. Freshw Sci 35:1133–1147

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • R Core Team (2022) R: a language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. https://www.R-project.org/

  • Ries KG, Guthrie JD, Rea AH, Steeves PA, Stewart DW (2008) StreamStats: a water resources web application. USGS, Reston

    Google Scholar 

  • Royer TV, Tank JL, David MB (2004) Transport and fate of nitrate in headwater agricultural streams in Illinois. J Environ Qual 33:1296–1304

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Santucci VJ, Gephard SR, Pescitelli SM (2005) Effects of multiple low-head dams on fish, macroinvertebrates, habitat, and water quality in the fox river, Illinois. N Am J Fish Manag 25:975–992

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seitzinger SP, Nielsen LP, Caffrey J, Christensen PB (1993) Denitrification measurements in aquatic sediments - a comparison of 3 methods. Biogeochemistry 23:147–167

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Seitzinger SP, Styles RV, Boyer EW, Alexander RB, Billen G, Howarth RW, Mayer B, Van Breemen N (2002) Nitrogen retention in rivers: model development and application to watersheds in the northeastern USA. Biogeochemistry 57:199–237

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seitzinger S, Harrison JA, Bohlke JK, Bouwman AF, Lowrance R, Peterson B, Tobias C, Van Drecht G (2006) Denitrification across landscapes and waterscapes: a synthesis. Ecol Appl 16:2064–2090

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Smith BR, Edds DR, Goeckler JM (2015) Lowhead dams and the downstream dispersal of zebra mussels. Hydrobiologia 755:1–12

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Solomon CT, Hotchkiss ER, Moslemi JM, Ulseth AJ, Stanley EH, Hall RO, Flecker AS (2009) Sediment size and nutrients regulate denitrification in a tropical stream. J N Am Benthol Soc 28:480–490

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stanley EH, Doyle MW (2002) A geomorphic perspective on nutrient retention following dam removal. Bioscience 52:693–701

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stanley EH, Luebke MA, Doyle MW, Marshall DW (2002) Short-term changes in channel form and macro invertebrate communities following low-head dam removal. J N Am Benthol Soc 21:172–187

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tiemann JS, Gillette DP, Wildhaber ML, Edds DR (2004) Effects of lowhead dams on riffle-dwelling fishes and macroinvertebrates in a midwestern river. Trans Am Fish Soc 133:705–717

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tiemann JS, Gillette DP, Wildhaber ML, Edds DR (2005) Effects of lowhead dams on the ephemeropterans, plecopterans, and trichopterans group in a North American river (vol 20, pg 519, 2005). J Freshw Ecol 20:800–800

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • USACE (2020) National inventory of dams. U. A. C. O. Engineers and F. E. M. Agency, Washington

    Google Scholar 

  • Wall LG, Tank JL, Royer TV, Bernot MJ (2005) Spatial and temporal variability in sediment denitrification within an agriculturally influenced reservoir. Biogeochemistry 76:85–111

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Walter RC, Merritts DJ (2008) Natural streams and the legacy of water-powered mills. Science 319:299–304

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Weishaar JL, Aiken GR, Bergamaschi BA, Fram MS, Fujii R, Mopper K (2003) Evaluation of specific ultraviolet absorbance as an indicator of the chemical composition and reactivity of dissolved organic carbon. Environ Sci Technol 37:4702–4708

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wollheim WM, Voosmarty CJ, Peterson BJ, Seitzinger SP, Hopkinson CS (2006) Relationship between river size and nutrient removal. Geophys Res Lett. https://doi.org/10.1029/2006GL025845

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wu X, Probst A, Barret M, Payre-Suc V, Camboulive T, Granouillac F (2021) Spatial variation of denitrification and key controlling factors in streams and ponds sediments from a critical zone (southwestern France). Appl Geochem 131:105009

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yan Y, Wang H, Zhu R, Chu L, Chen Y (2013) Influences of low-head dams on the fish assemblages in the headwater streams of the Qingyi watershed, China. Environ Biol Fishes 96:495–506

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zaidel PA, Roy AH, Houle KM, Lambert B, Letcher BH, Nislow KH, Smith C (2021) Impacts of small dams on stream temperature. Ecol Indic 120:106878

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zuur AF, Leno EN, Walker NJ, Saveliev AA, Smith GM (2009) Mixed effects models and extensions in ecology with R. Springer, New York, US

    Book  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to E. Bacmeister and R. Zobel for their valuable field and laboratory technical support in this study. This research was financially supported by the National Science Foundation grant HS-1929750 to S. Inamdar, A. Gold, and M. Peipoch. Insightful comments from four anonymous reviewers greatly improved the content and presentation of this manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA

    Johanna Hripto, S. Inamdar, M. Sherman & E. Peck

  2. Department of Natural Resource Sciences, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, USA

    A. J. Gold & K. Addy

  3. Stroud Water Research Center, Avondale, PA, USA

    S. Bernasconi & M. Peipoch

Authors
  1. Johanna Hripto
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. S. Inamdar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. M. Sherman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. E. Peck
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. A. J. Gold
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. S. Bernasconi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. K. Addy
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. M. Peipoch
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to M. Peipoch.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Hripto, J., Inamdar, S., Sherman, M. et al. Effects of relic low-head dams on stream denitrification potential: seasonality and biogeochemical controls. Aquat Sci 84, 60 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00027-022-00894-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00027-022-00894-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation