Natural and Anthropogenic Controls on the Ecosystem Services Provided by Dissolved Organic Matter: A Case Study of the Boulder Creek Watershed
Abstract
Dissolved organic matter (DOM) performs a number of vital functions in aquatic ecosystems, playing a substantial role in carbon and nitrogen cycles and the bioavailability of metals as well as generally affecting water chemistry. Additionally, it is considered the main cause of the the formation of harmful disinfection byproducts during water treatment processes. Because DOM is vital for ecosystem functioning, but potentially problematic for some direct human uses of water, it proves a complex case study for the application of the ecosystem services framework. To add to the complexity, human behavior can affect the amount and composition of DOM in water. Increasing concentrations of DOM have been observed in many areas of Northern Europe and North America. Hypotheses which have been suggested to explain these increased concentrations include changing land use, thawing peatlands, increased nitrogen deposition, and a lessening of acid rain, a particularly interesting idea because it would be an unintended consequence of a policy designed to protect other ecosystem functions. This multi-year study investigates DOM in the Boulder Creek Watershed in Colorado to better understand seasonal cycling of DOM and the link between DOM in the river and organic matter in the catchment, which is a substantial DOM source. Fluorescence spectroscopy was used to analyze the chemical character of the DOM in an attempt to elucidate the watershed processes driving changes in DOM concentration. Because flow in Boulder Creek is partially controlled by Barker dam and reservoir, this study site provides an opportunity to investigate both natural DOM cycling and the impact of an anthropogenic influence. By better understanding DOM cycling and the ecosystem services it provides, we can better predict how DOM dynamics may shift in the future and be prepared to adjust our behavior and water treatment processes accordingly.
- Publication:
-
AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2011
- Bibcode:
- 2011AGUFM.H54B..08G
- Keywords:
-
- 0439 BIOGEOSCIENCES / Ecosystems;
- structure and dynamics;
- 0470 BIOGEOSCIENCES / Nutrients and nutrient cycling;
- 1813 HYDROLOGY / Eco-hydrology;
- 1865 HYDROLOGY / Soils