Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 August 2022) | Viewed by 20580

Special Issue Editor

Department of Geography, University of Marburg, 35037 Marburg, Germany
Interests: watershed hydrology; integrated lake/river; soil and water conservation; river engineering; soil degradation; contamination; dryland
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

It is our pleasure to announce the opening of a new Special Issue in the Applied Sciences Journal.

The main topics of the issue will be regarding river floodplains and reservoirs as both sinks and sources for pollutants. River floodplains consist of different aged sediments and soil particles, which have been eroded from the upper river catchment and transported during long-term runoff processes and special flood events. Since their sediments and soils are consisting predominately of fine particles, they function as sediment sinks for different kinds of pollutants, coming from the whole catchment through diffuse and direct input into the river water, soils, and sediments of the floodplain, with migration options to the groundwater and to the floodplain vegetation. Dependent on the position both within the course of the river catchment and within the cross-section of the floodplain, and on the event-related discharge, the grain sizes and the soils of the floodplain are different, and therefore, their ability to store (sink) or not to store (source) potential pollutants varies. Additionally, floodplains have other functions, such as groundwater recharge, agricultural land use, nature habitat, infrastructure, etc. Because of these dependencies and poly-functions, river floodplains are a priority objective of environmental research. Reservoirs, embedded within the river network, are human-made water and matter sinks. Their matter sink function is more intensive than that of floodplains. This is why pollutant concentration in reservoirs is in most cases quite higher than in floodplains. Due to the defined year of construction, reservoir sediments and their pollutant concentration rate are temporally clearly definable. During reconstruction measures of reservoir dams, reservoirs are temporally empty, and their sediment load is exposed and accessible. 

Under this perspective, the Special Issue wants to contribute to the field, presenting the most relevant advances in this research area.

The following are some of the topics proposed for this Special Issue:

  • Spatial distribution of floodplain soils and sediments and their matter sink and source potential;
  • Grain size distribution of vertical profiles of floodplain soils and sediments as a result of long-term sedimentation and soil formation and short-term flood events and their matter sink and source potential;
  • Contaminated river water and groundwater in interaction with floodplains;
  • Heavy metals in floodplains (water, soils, sediments, plants);
  • Microplastics in floodplains (water, soils, sediments, plants);
  • Phosphorus in floodplains (water, soils, sediments, plants);
  • Salts in floodplains (water, soils, sediments, plants);
  • Floodplain banks as sinks and sources of pollutants;
  • Vegetation belts within floodplains as sinks and sources of pollutants;
  • Dated floodplain and reservoir soils and sediments in correlation to pollutant impacts;
  • Pollutant sink function and pollutant concentrations in reservoir sediments;
  • Spatial differentiation of pollutants in reservoirs (water, soils, sediments, fishes).

Prof. Dr. Christian Opp 
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • Floodplains
  • Reservoirs
  • Pollutant sinks
  • Sediments
  • Soils
  • Heavy metals
  • Microplastics
  • Phosphorus
  • Salts

Published Papers (10 papers)

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Editorial

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2 pages, 159 KiB  
Editorial
Special Issue “Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants”
by Christian Opp
Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(1), 33; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app13010033 - 20 Dec 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 579
Abstract
Floodplain soils and reservoir sediments are known for their fine-grained structure and rich organic-matter substances; therefore, they are able to sorb metals and other potential pollutants, which is is characteristic of their sink function [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants)

Research

Jump to: Editorial

19 pages, 3704 KiB  
Article
Accumulation of Heavy Metals in Bottom Sediment and Their Migration in the Water Ecosystem of Kapshagay Reservoir in Kazakhstan
by Laura Ismukhanova, Temirbek Choduraev, Christian Opp and Azamat Madibekov
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(22), 11474; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app122211474 - 11 Nov 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 1288
Abstract
The bottom sediment of reservoirs has many functions. Among them, matter sorption is a very important one, and results in many side-effects on the reservoir sediment forming the water–bottom sediment system. As a result, bottom sediment can also be an indicator of anthropogenic [...] Read more.
The bottom sediment of reservoirs has many functions. Among them, matter sorption is a very important one, and results in many side-effects on the reservoir sediment forming the water–bottom sediment system. As a result, bottom sediment can also be an indicator of anthropogenic water pollution. There is only very little knowledge of this situation in the study area. The main objective was the analysis of heavy metal accumulation in bottom sediment, as well as their ability to migrate throughout the water–bottom sediment system and their spatial distribution in the Kapshagay Reservoir in Kazakhstan. Heavy metal concentrations, in the both water samples and the bottom sediment, were determined using the atomic absorption spectrophotometric method. Surfer software was used to visualize the processes of migration and accumulation. Another objective was the development of model maps of the spatial distribution of metals in the reservoir water area, which indicated significant anthropogenic loads. It is obvious that both the transboundary inflow of the Ili River and the inflow from small rivers in the territory of Kazakhstan are the reasons for the anthropogenic water and sediment load. The results of the spectrometric analysis verify the water pollution in the reservoir, revealing increased concentrations of zinc reaching up to 10.8 µg/L and lead up to 32.7 µg/L, transported by the transboundary runoff of the Ili River and by the small rivers on the left bank into the Kapshagay Reservoir. Sediment concentrations close to the central part and dam zone of the reservoir reached the following values: zinc up to 37.0 mg/kg and lead up to 8.8 mg/kg. The results of this study indicate a significant anthropogenic load of the ecological conditions of the Kapshagay Reservoir. This is discussed and compared with other relevant studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants)
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18 pages, 5618 KiB  
Article
Polychlorinated Biphenyls in the Snow Cover of South-Eastern Kazakhstan
by Nariman Amirgaliyevich Amirgaliyev, Akhmetkal Rakhmetullayevich Medeu, Christian Opp, Azamat Madibekov, Roza Kulbekova, Laura Ismukhanova and Askhat Zhadi
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(17), 8660; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app12178660 - 29 Aug 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1208
Abstract
The presence of large sources of environmental pollution due to persistent organic pollutants (POPs), in particular, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), in Kazakhstan necessitates the assessment of pollution as a result of these toxicants. For this purpose, we chose snow cover as an indicator for [...] Read more.
The presence of large sources of environmental pollution due to persistent organic pollutants (POPs), in particular, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), in Kazakhstan necessitates the assessment of pollution as a result of these toxicants. For this purpose, we chose snow cover as an indicator for assessing pollution status in the study area. An assessment of the PCB accumulation level included in the list of POPs was carried out for a snow cover (SC) study in south-east Kazakhstan. The content of PCBs with a wide congener composition was determined using the chromatographic analysis method. During the winter periods of 2014, 2015, 2018–2020 and 2021, the SC pollution of the study area from up to 25 individual PCB congeners was identified. These congeners included highly toxic dioxin-like congener PCBs 105; 108; 114; 118 and “marker” PCBs 52; 101; 138; 153. These congeners were mainly found in snow samples with a wide range of PCB congener compositions. The main PCB pollution sources were indicated. The analysis of the obtained results and structure of the congener composition of PCBs show that the SC contamination in this territory occurs under the influence of local and regional sources. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants)
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15 pages, 2145 KiB  
Article
Multi-Metal Distribution Patterns in Soils of the Sacramento River Floodplain and Their Controlling Factors
by Tom Lotz, Shoubao Su and Christian Opp
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(17), 8462; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app12178462 - 24 Aug 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1821
Abstract
Metal contamination, especially in river floodplain soils, can have detrimental effects on human health. Much research has been conducted to describe the distribution patterns of metals and the factors involved in these patterns. However, most studies focus on the distribution of individual metals [...] Read more.
Metal contamination, especially in river floodplain soils, can have detrimental effects on human health. Much research has been conducted to describe the distribution patterns of metals and the factors involved in these patterns. However, most studies focus on the distribution of individual metals in soils, not on the co-occurrence of metals, and on a selection of metals associated with anthropogenic sources known to have especially severe effects; this had led to a lack of knowledge about many other metals with potentially harmful effects. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the multi-metal distribution patterns of 38 metals in the Sacramento River floodplain and find their controlling factors. We found 484 significant correlations between metal distributions. Less commonly studied metals, such as gallium, lanthanum, scandium, and vanadium, had more than 25 correlations each. In total, 13 individual metal patterns described the spatial distribution of 22 metals. Three multi-metal patterns were extracted, explaining 86.9% of the spatial variation of the individual patterns. The most important factors were the distance to specific streams due to emission and transport processes in their watersheds, and local soil properties. We conclude that multi-metal distribution patterns hold more information than individual metal patterns, contributing to the gathering of information about less commonly sampled metals and allowing more specific source identification. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants)
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17 pages, 6118 KiB  
Article
Soil Erosion Assessment Using the RUSLE Model, Remote Sensing, and GIS in the Shatt Al-Arab Basin (Iraq-Iran)
by Hadi Allafta and Christian Opp
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(15), 7776; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app12157776 - 02 Aug 2022
Cited by 21 | Viewed by 2785
Abstract
In the Shatt Al-Arab basin, soil erosion is a major problem due to the steepness of the terrain and the significant difference in altitude between the upstream and downstream parts of the basin. Vast quantities of soil are moved annually, resulting in massive [...] Read more.
In the Shatt Al-Arab basin, soil erosion is a major problem due to the steepness of the terrain and the significant difference in altitude between the upstream and downstream parts of the basin. Vast quantities of soil are moved annually, resulting in massive repercussions including soil degradation, structural damage, biodiversity loss, and productivity reduction in the catchment area, huge sediment load, and the pollution of streams and rivers. Consequently, the assessment of soil erosion risk and geographical distribution is essential for constructing a database for developing effective control strategies. Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) was combined with Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) in the current work to define the soil erosion hazard map in the Shatt Al-Arab basin. The RUSLE model included various characteristics for soil erosion zonation including rainfall erosivity, soil erodibility, slope length and steepness, land cover and management, and conservation support practices. Annual erosion rates in this study in tons per hectare were: extremely high (more than 50); very high (50 to 16.5); high (16.5 to 2.2); medium (2.2 to 1); and low (1 to 0) ton ha−1year−1 representing 16, 4, 13, 7, and 60 % of the basin’s area, respectively. The high soil loss rates are associated with heavy rainfall, loamy soil predominance, elevated terrains/plateau borders with a steep side slope, and intensive farming. Managers and policymakers may use the results of this study to implement adequate conservation programs to prevent soil erosion or recommend soil conservation acts if development projects are to proceed in places with a high soil erosion risk. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants)
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19 pages, 3357 KiB  
Article
Sink and Source Functions for Metal(loid)s in Sediments and Soils of Two Water Reservoirs of the Ore Mountains, Saxony, Germany
by Thomas Beier, Christian Opp, Jens Hahn and Nina Zitzer
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(13), 6354; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app12136354 - 22 Jun 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 1365
Abstract
Since reservoirs can act as sinks for potential contaminants, such as metal(loid)s, sediment management is a challenge for reservoir operators. To exemplify the variability of concentrations of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), cobalt (Co), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), vanadium (V) [...] Read more.
Since reservoirs can act as sinks for potential contaminants, such as metal(loid)s, sediment management is a challenge for reservoir operators. To exemplify the variability of concentrations of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), cobalt (Co), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), vanadium (V) and zinc (Zn), the sediments of two differently constituted reservoirs located in the Ore Mountains (Saxony, Germany) were comparatively investigated. In the sediments of the Einsiedel Reservoir, which has a catchment area dominated by forestry, the median values showed an enrichment of Cd (6.7 mg/kg), Co (31.4 mg/kg), Hg (0.57 mg/kg), Ni (39.0 mg/kg) and Zn (283 mg/kg), mainly due to an elevated geogenic background and a preferential input of these elements from the soils of the catchment area. Sediments of the Berthelsdorf Smelter Pond, which has a predominantly agricultural catchment, had relatively high median concentrations of As (62.9 mg/kg), Cd (10.3 mg/kg), Cr (43.1 mg/kg), Cu (50.2 mg/kg), Hg (0.51 mg/kg), Pb (204 mg/kg), V (57.0 mg/kg) and Zn (626 mg/kg), which was due to an elevated geogenic background and heavy anthropogenic metal(loid) inputs over the past. Statistical analyses indicated that site-specific differences (e.g., in the content of organic matter or in the physicochemical properties of sediments) may influence the sink and source functions of the reservoirs for metal(loid)s. In this context, a strong influence of the specific catchment characteristics on the sediment composition of the reservoirs was concluded. Based on the German Federal Soil Protection Ordinance, the status quo of the metal(loid) contamination of the two reservoirs was evaluated and recommendations for further management and investigations were derived. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants)
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18 pages, 3270 KiB  
Article
Ranking of Basin-Scale Factors Affecting Metal Concentrations in River Sediment
by Tom Lotz and Christian Opp
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(6), 2805; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app12062805 - 09 Mar 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1361
Abstract
River sediments often contain potentially harmful pollutants such as metals. Much research has been conducted to identify factors involved in sediment concentrations of metals. While most metal pollution studies focus on smaller scales, it has been shown that basin-scale parameters are powerful predictors [...] Read more.
River sediments often contain potentially harmful pollutants such as metals. Much research has been conducted to identify factors involved in sediment concentrations of metals. While most metal pollution studies focus on smaller scales, it has been shown that basin-scale parameters are powerful predictors of river water quality. The present study focused on basin-scale factors of metal concentrations in river sediments. The study was performed on the contiguous USA using Random Forest (R.F.) to analyze the importance of different factors of the metal pollution potential of river sediments and evaluate the possibility of assessing this potential from basin characteristics. Results indicated that the most important factors belonged to the groups Geology, Dams, and Land cover. Rock characteristics (contents of K2O, CaO, and SiO2) and reservoir drainage area were strong factors. Vegetation indices were more important than land cover types. The response of different metals to basin-scale factors varied greatly. The R.F. models performed well with prediction errors of 16.5% to 28.1%, showing that basin-scale parameters hold sufficient information for predicting potential metal concentrations. The results contribute to research and policymaking dependent on understanding large-scale factors of metal pollution. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants)
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15 pages, 2931 KiB  
Article
Catchment Soil Properties Affect Metal(loid) Enrichment in Reservoir Sediments of German Low Mountain Regions
by Jens Hahn, Thanh Bui, Mathias Kessler, Collin J. Weber, Thomas Beier, Antje Mildenberger, Martina Traub and Christian Opp
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(5), 2277; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app12052277 - 22 Feb 2022
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 1539
Abstract
Sediment management is a fundamental part of reservoir operation, but it is often complicated by metal(loid) enrichment in sediments. Knowledge concerning the sources of potential contaminants is therefore of important significance. To address this issue, the concentrations and the mobile fractions of metal(loid)s [...] Read more.
Sediment management is a fundamental part of reservoir operation, but it is often complicated by metal(loid) enrichment in sediments. Knowledge concerning the sources of potential contaminants is therefore of important significance. To address this issue, the concentrations and the mobile fractions of metal(loid)s were determined in the sediments and the respective catchment areas of six reservoirs. The results indicate that reservoirs generally have a high potential for contaminated sediment accumulation due to preferential deposition of fine particles. The median values of the element-specific enrichment factor (EF) demonstrates slight enrichments of arsenic (EF: 3.4), chromium (EF: 2.8), and vanadium (EF: 2.9) for reservoir sediments. The enrichments of cadmium (EF: 8.2), manganese (EF: 3.9), nickel (EF: 4.8), and zinc (EF: 5.0) are significantly higher. This is enabled by a diffuse element release from the soils into the impounded streams, which is particularly favored by soil acidity. Leaching from the catchment soils partially enriches elements in stream sediments before their fine-grained portions in particular are deposited as reservoir sediment. We assume that this effect is of high relevance especially for reservoirs impounding small streams with forested catchments and weakly acid buffering parent material of soil formation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants)
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35 pages, 13041 KiB  
Article
Water Quality Problems Analysis and Assessment of the Ecological Security Level of the Transboundary Ural-Caspian Basin of the Republic of Kazakhstan
by Nariman Amirgalievich Amirgaliev, Maulken Askarova, Christian Opp, Alikhan Medeu, Roza Kulbekova and Akhmetkal Rakhmetullayevich Medeu
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(4), 2059; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app12042059 - 16 Feb 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5015
Abstract
Both the insufficiency of water resources and the contamination of even transboundary water bodies are serious problems. Water quality analyses of the transboundary (between Russia and Kazakhstan) Ural River and the Kazakh sector of the Caspian Sea, and their assessment are the main [...] Read more.
Both the insufficiency of water resources and the contamination of even transboundary water bodies are serious problems. Water quality analyses of the transboundary (between Russia and Kazakhstan) Ural River and the Kazakh sector of the Caspian Sea, and their assessment are the main research questions of this study. It is shown that the Ural River is heavily contaminated by polychlorinated biphenyls, heavy metals, oil contaminants, and pesticides, arising from industrial enterprises and agricultural objects. The results show that these toxicants are not only present in water, but they are also accumulated in the muscular tissues of all fish (Abramis brama, Sander lucioperca, Aspius aspius). The Caspian Sea is heavily contaminated by petroleum hydrocarbons due to off shore oil production. A sufficiently high level of accumulation of petroleum hydrocarbons, organochlorine pesticides and heavy metals was determined in the muscles of Caspian fish. All these contaminations lead to the loss of biodiversity and bio-productivity of the Caspian Sea. The authors propose a methodology for a quantitative assessment of the environmental safety level in relation to the Kazakh part of the Caspian Sea, based on bioindication methods. Recommendations, aimed for maintaining acceptable values of water resources quality, are suggested. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants)
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22 pages, 3094 KiB  
Article
Spatial Connections between Microplastics and Heavy Metal Pollution within Floodplain Soils
by Collin J. Weber, Jens Hahn and Christian Opp
Appl. Sci. 2022, 12(2), 595; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app12020595 - 08 Jan 2022
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2392
Abstract
Soils contain an increasing number of different pollutants, which are often released into the environment by human activity. Among the “new” potential pollutants are plastics and microplastics. “Recognized” pollutants such as heavy metals, of geogenic and anthropogenic origin, now meet purely anthropogenic contaminants [...] Read more.
Soils contain an increasing number of different pollutants, which are often released into the environment by human activity. Among the “new” potential pollutants are plastics and microplastics. “Recognized” pollutants such as heavy metals, of geogenic and anthropogenic origin, now meet purely anthropogenic contaminants such as plastic particles. Those can meet especially in floodplain landscapes and floodplain soils, because of their function as a temporary sink for sediments, nutrients, and pollutants. Based on a geospatial sampling approach, we analyzed the soil properties and heavy metal contents (ICP-MS) in soil material and macroplastic particles, and calculated total plastic concentrations (Ptot) from preliminary studies. Those data were used to investigate spatial connections between both groups of pollutants. Our results from the example of the Lahn river catchment show a low-to-moderate contamination of the floodplain soils with heavy metals and a wide distribution of plastic contents up to a depth of two meters. Furthermore, we were able to document heavy metal contents in macroplastic particles. Spatial and statistical correlations between both pollutants were found. Those correlations are mainly expressed by a comparable variability in concentrations across the catchment and in a common accumulation in topsoil and upper soil or sediment layers (0–50 cm). The results indicate comparable deposition conditions of both pollutants in the floodplain system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Floodplains and Reservoirs as Sinks and Sources for Pollutants)
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