Abstract
Wetlands have become the focus of numerous research and restoration efforts due to their ability to assimilate phosphorus and nitrogen from urban wastewater and stormwater runoff. Long-term data collected at Boney Marsh, Florida, USA, and the USEPA wetland database were analyzed to develop a simple tool that can be used to predict and optimize phosphorus retention in wetland treatment systems. Wetland properties such as water loading rate, water depth, P-loading rate, and water retention time were examined for their influence on phosphorus retention. The relationship between wetland properties and phosphorus removal efficiency was reduced to a simple quantitative diagram, 'The Phosphorus Removal Efficiency Diagram.′ The proposed diagram provides a simple management tool that predicts expected treatment range using controllable hydrologic conditions.
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Moustafa, M. Analysis of phosphorus retention in free-water surface treatment wetlands. Hydrobiologia 392, 41–53 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1003549206822
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1003549206822