Phosphorus Dynamic in Wetlands

The projected greater warming at higher/northern latitudes in the coming decades due to global climatic changes can mineralize substantial amount of the organic matter and supply massive amount of phosphorus (P) to the water column, and cause the collapse of freshwater wetlands. Thus, the rates and duration of organic matter accumulations/decompositions under rising global temperatures are critical determinants of how a freshwater wetland functions as an ecological unit within a landscape. Phosphorus is a limiting nutrient and a primary controller of eutrophication. Once the external P loads are curtailed, internal P regeneration, resulting from decompositions of detritus and soil/sediment organic matter determine the productivity, as well as the water quality of a wetland. Thus, global rise in temperature not only causes hydro-climatic fluctuations but can also change the composition of aquatic/semi-aquatic communities, in turn, could lead to adverse effect on human food chain to collapse of the ecosystem. While P enrichment may lead to immediate algal blooms in wetlands/aquatic systems, decreased in P input from external sources may not be able to stop the blooms for a considerable period of time depending on the P loading from within. The extent of P mineralization under changing conditions, enzymatic hydrolysis, and estimation of different P pools using 31P NMR in sediments and the water columns showed that the stability and bioavailability of P can greatly be influenced by rise in temperature and fluctuations in water level, thus, are crucial in determining the fate of the freshwater wetlands.