Abstract
In regions with a distinct winter-period, nearly half of the annual runoff occurs during a short snow-melt period early in spring. During this time functioning buffer zones are important means of preventing the leaching of phosphorus from forest land into downstream watercourses. Sparse vegetation restricts biological P accumulation and high flows reduce the capacity of deeper soil layers to adsorb P, indicating that the effectiveness of buffer zones may be low. Our aim was to increase the understanding of phosphorus retention in a buffer zone area under such unfavourable conditions for P removal, and to estimate the amount of P sorbed by soil and taken up by vascular plants and mosses. Over a five-day period in spring we added 10kg (60kg ha-1) of PO4-P and 185MBq (1100MBq ha-1) 32P to a 25-50m wide buffer zone area (0.17ha) in southern Finland. We measured the total P retention and recovery during ten days after the beginning of the experiment. Recovery of 32P was 16% of added P, of which 90% was in soil, 3% in vascular plants and 5% in mosses. Thus, our results showed that the total P retention was low, most likely because the water flow did not slow down sufficiently and penetrate deeply enough to enable a close contact between P in the runoff and the soil matrix. Most of the recovered P was in the soil suggesting that adsorption by soil was the most important sink for P under early spring high flow conditions.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ahtiainen, M., & Huttunen, P. (1999). Long-term effects of forestry managements on water quality and loading in brooks. Boreal Environment Research, 4, 101–114.
Atlas of Finland (1987). Folio 131 Climate, National Board of Survey and Geographical Society of Finland, Helsinki, Finland, 32 p.
Cooke, J.G. (1992). Phosphorus processes in a wetland after a decade of receiving a sewage effluent. Journal of Environment Quality, 21, 733–739.
Correll, D.L. (1998). The role of phosphorus in the eutrophication of receiving waters: a review. Journal of Environment Quality, 27, 261–266.
Cuttle, S.P. (1983). Chemical properties of upland peats influencing the retention of phosphate and potassium ions. Journal of Soil Science, 34, 75–82.
Drebs, A., Nordlund, A., Karlsson, P., Helminen, J., & Rissanen, P. (2002). Climatological statistics of Finland 1971–2000. Climatic Statistics of Finland 2002:1, Finnish Meteoroligac Institute, Helsinki, Finland, 98 p.
Giesler, R., Andersson, T., Lövgren, L., & Persson, P. (2005). Phosphate sorption in aluminium- and iron-rich humus soils. Soil Science Society of American Journal, 69, 77–86.
Giesler, R., Petersson, T., & Högberg, P. (2002) Phosphorus limitation in boreal forests: effects of aluminum and iron accumulation in the humus layer. Ecosystems, 5, 300–314.
Hartikainen, H. (1982). Relationship between phosphorus intensity and capacity parameters in Finnish mineral soils II Sorption-desorption isotherms and their relation to soil characteristics. Journal of the Scientific Agricultural Society of Finland, 54, 251–262.
Heikkinen, K., Ihme, R., Osma, A.-M., & Hartikainen, H. (1995). Phosphate removal by peat from peat mining drainage water during overland flow wetland treatment. Journal of Environment Quality, 24, 597–602.
Heikurainen, L., & Pakarinen, P. (1982) Peatland classification. In J. Laine (Ed.), Peatlands and their utilization in Finland (pp. 14–23). Finnish Peatland Society, Finnish National Committee of the International Peatland Society, Helsinki.
Huttunen, A., Heikkinen, K., & Ihme, R. (1996). Nutrient retention in the vegetation of an overland flow treatment system in northern Finland. Aquatic Botany, 55, 61–73.
Ihme, R. (1994). Pintavalutus turvetuotantoalueiden valumavesien puhdistuksessa. Summary: Use of the overland flow wetland treatment system for the purification of runoff water from peat mining areas. VTT Julkaisuja 798, Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT), Espoo, Finland, 140 p.
Jensen, M.B., Hansen, H.C.B., Nielsen, N.E., & Magid, J. (1999). Phosphate leaching from intact soil column in response to reducing conditions. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution, 113, 411–423.
Kellogg, L.E., & Bridgham, S.D. (2003). Phosphorus retention and movement across an ombrotrophic-minerotrophic peatland gradient. Biogeochemistry, 63, 299–315.
Kenttämies, K. (1981). The effects on water quality of forested drainage and fertilization in peatlands. Publications of the Water Research Institute, 43, 24–31.
Koskiaho, J., Ekholm, P., Räty, M., Riihimäki, J., & Puustinen, M. (2003). Retaining agricultural nutrients in constructed wetland — experiences under boreal conditions. Ecology Engineering, 20, 89–103.
Kubin, E., Ylitolonen, A., Välitalo, J., & Eskelinen, J. (2000). Prevention of nutrient leaching from a forest regeneration area using overland flow fields. In M. Haigh, & J. Křeček (Eds.), Environmental reconstruction in headwater areas (pp. 161–169). Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, Netherlands.
Liljaniemi, P., Vuori, K.-M., Tossavainen, T., Kotanen, J., Haapanen, M., Lepistö, A., & Kenttämies, K. (2003). Effectiveness of constructed overland flow areas in decreasing diffuse pollution from forest drainages. Environment Management, 32, 602–613.
Lindholm, T. (1981). Suppasuon kasviyhdyskuntien perustuotanto-ominaisuudet. Summary: Patterns of primary production of plant communities in a small kettle hole mire. Suo — Mires and Peat, 32, 104–109.
Mahapatra, I.C., & Patrick, W.H. (1969). Inorganic phosphate transformation in waterlogged soils. Soil Science., 107, 281–288.
Nieminen, M. (2003). Effects of clear-cutting and site preparation on water quality from a drained Scots pine mire in southern Finland. Boreal Environment Research, 8, 53–59.
Nieminen, M., & Ahti, E. (1993). Talvilannoituksen vaikutus ravinteiden huuhtoutumiseen karulta suolta. Summary: Leaching of nutrients from an ombrotrophic peatland area after fertilizer application on snow. Folia Forestalia 814, 22 pp.
Nieminen, M., Ahti, E., Nousiainen, H., Joensuu, S., & Vuollekoski, M. (2005a). Capacity of riparian buffer zones to reduce sediment concentrations in discharge from peatlands drained for forestry. Silva Fennica, 39, 331–339.
Nieminen, M., Ahti, E., Nousiainen, H., Joensuu, S., & Vuollekoski, M. (2005b). Does the use of riparian buffer zones in forest drainage sites to reduce the transport of solids simultaneously increase the export of solutes?. Boreal Environmet Research, 10, 191–201.
Nieminen, M., & Jarva, M. (1996). Phosphorus adsorption by peat from drained mires in Southern Finland. Scandinavian Journal of Forest Research, 11, 321–326.
Noe, G.B., Scinto, L.J., Taylor, J., Childers, D.L., & Jones, R.D. (2003). Phosphorus cycling and partitioning in an oligotrophic Everglades wetland ecosystem: a radioisotope tracing study. Freshwater Biology, 48, 1993–2008.
Pietiläinen, O.P. (1997). Agricultural Phosphorus Load and Phosphorus as a Limiting Factor for Algal Growth in Finnish Lakes and Rivers. In: H. Tunney, O.T. Carton, P.C. Brookes, & A.E. Johnston (Eds.), Phosphorus Loss from Soil to Water (pp. 354–355). Cambridge, England: CAB International.
Richardson, C.J., & Marshall, P.E. (1986). Processes controlling phosphorus movement, storage, and export of phosphorus in a fen peatland. Ecological Monographs, 56, 279–302.
Sample, E.C., Soper, R.J., Racz, G.J. (1980). Reactions of phosphate fertilizers in soils. In F. E. Khasawneh, E.C. Sample, & E.J. Kamprath (Eds.), The role of phosphorus in agriculture (pp. 263–310). Madison: American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America and Soil Science Society of America.
Saukkonen, S., & Kortelainen, P. (1995). Metsätaloustoimen/-piteiden vaikutus ravinteiden ja orgaanisen aineen huuhtoutumiseen. In S. Saukkonen, S.K. Kenttämies (Eds.), Metsätalouden vesistövaikutukset ja niiden torjunta, METVE-projektin loppuraportti (pp. 15–32). Helsinki, Finland: Suomen Ympäristö 2.
Silvan, N., Sallataus, T., Vasander, H., & Laine, J. (2005) Hydraulic nutrient transport in a restored peatland buffer. Boreal Environment Research, 10, 203–210.
Silvan, N., Vasander, H., Karsisto, M., & Laine, J. (2003). Microbial immobilisation of added nitrogen and phosphorus in constructed wetland buffer. Applied Soil Ecology, 24, 143–149.
Silvan, N., Vasander, H., & Laine, J. (2004). Vegetation is the main factor in nutrient retention in a constructed wetland buffer. Plant Soil, 258, 179–187.
Uusi-Kämppä, J., Braskerud, B., Jansson, H., Syversen, N., & Uusitalo, R. (2000) Buffer zones and constructed wetlands as filters for agricultural phosphorus. Journal of Environment Quality, 29, 151–158.
Vasander, H., Tuittila, E.-S., Lode, E., Lundin, L., Ilomets, M., Sallantaus, T., Heikkilä, R., Pitkänen, M.-L., & Laine, J. (2003). Status and restoration of peatlands in northern Europe. Wetlands Ecological and Management, 11, 51–63.
Wang, C. (1981). Extractable Al, Fe and Mn. In: McKeague, J. (ed.), Manual of soil sampling and methods of analysis (pp. 98–105). Ottawa, Canada: Canadian Society of Soil Science.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
VȨȨnȨnen, R., Nieminen, M., Vuollekoski, M. et al. Retention of phosphorus in soil and vegetation of a buffer zone area during snowmelt peak flow in southern Finland. Water Air Soil Pollut 177, 103–118 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-006-9106-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-006-9106-1