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Water quality characteristics and ecological risk evaluation of a landscaped river replenished by three reclaimed water sources in Qingdao, China

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Abstract

The water crisis may be solved by utilizing reclaimed water. Three reclaimed water sources have restored the lower sections of the Licun River, forming a landscaped river. In this paper, the river's water quality was monitored for a year, and the ecological concerns were analyzed using luminescent bacteria, chlorella, and zebrafish. The results indicated that although basic water quality indicators like COD and ammonia fluctuated along the river, the classification of water quality was primarily affected by factors such as flow rate and water depth. Under experimental conditions, the toxic inhibitory effect of river water on luminescent bacteria, chlorella, and zebrafish was related to the treatment process of reclaimed water. It was found that the reclaimed water produced by the MBR, along with the UV disinfection process, showed no detectable toxicity. In contrast, the MBBR process, when combined with coagulation, sedimentation, filtration, ozonation, and chlorination, seemed to be the source of this toxicity. Along the river, the results of water quality assessments and ecological risk assessments were different, indicating that both should be conducted to evaluate rivers replenished with reclaimed water.

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The data supporting the findings of this study are available within the article and its supplementary materials.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank the Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province [ZR2021ME059].

Funding

This work was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province [ZR2021ME059].

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Conceptualization, Methodology, Formal analysis, Writing—Review & Editing: [Yanan Cai]; Investigation, Writing—Original Draft: [Yunze Bi]; Investigation, Writing—Original Draft: [Bowen Tian]; Writing—Review & Editing: [Lihua Cheng]; Investigation, Formal analysis: [Shuhui Zhou]; Investigation, Formal analysis: [Quanyong Qi].

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Correspondence to Yanan Cai.

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Responsible Editor: Xianliang Yi

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Cai, Y., Bi, Y., Tian, B. et al. Water quality characteristics and ecological risk evaluation of a landscaped river replenished by three reclaimed water sources in Qingdao, China. Environ Sci Pollut Res (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-024-33617-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-024-33617-y

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