Details zur Publikation

Kategorie Textpublikation
Referenztyp Zeitschriften
DOI 10.1088/1748-9326/ad19ed
Lizenz creative commons licence
Titel (primär) Winter post-droughts amplify extreme nitrate concentrations in German rivers
Autor Saavedra, F.; Musolff, A.; von Freyberg, J.; Merz, R.; Knöller, K.; Müller, C.; Brunner, M.; Tarasova, L.
Quelle Environmental Research Letters
Erscheinungsjahr 2024
Department HDG; CATHYD
Band/Volume 19
Heft 2
Seite von art. 024007
Sprache englisch
Topic T5 Future Landscapes
Daten-/Softwarelinks https://doi.org/10.4211/hs.0ec5f43e43c349ff818a8d57699c0fe1
https://doi.org/10.4211/hs.88254bd930d1466c85992a7dea6947a4
Abstract Hydrological extremes can affect nutrient export from catchments to streams, posing a threat to aquatic ecosystems. In this study, we investigated the effects of hydrological drought on nitrate concentrations in the streamflow of 182 German catchments from 1980 to 2020. We found that across all seasons, 40% and 25% of the catchments showed significantly lower nitrate concentrations during drought and post-droughts respectively when compared to non-drought conditions. However, we observed pronounced spatial variability in the responses, particularly during winter droughts and post-droughts, with more catchments exhibiting higher nitrate concentrations. Specifically, nitrate concentrations were significantly higher in 25% of the study catchments during winter droughts, particularly in wetter catchments with low nitrogen retention. During winter post-droughts, nitrate concentrations are significantly higher in 19% of the catchments, especially in wetter catchments with more nitrogen surplus. Moreover, the likelihood of nitrate seasonal extremes increased by 6% during winter post-drought in our study catchments. Considering the projected increase in the frequency of droughts in Germany, the increase in nitrate concentrations during the corresponding post-drought periods poses a potential threat to aquatic ecosystem health.
dauerhafte UFZ-Verlinkung https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=28564
Saavedra, F., Musolff, A., von Freyberg, J., Merz, R., Knöller, K., Müller, C., Brunner, M., Tarasova, L. (2024):
Winter post-droughts amplify extreme nitrate concentrations in German rivers
Environ. Res. Lett. 19 (2), art. 024007 10.1088/1748-9326/ad19ed