Water Quality Management ConferenceFrontier Centre – Manitoba Sustainable Energy Association

Victoria Inn WinnipegFebruary 13, 2006

Exploring the Scientific Findings Related to Nutrient Loading

Impact of Phosphorus on Water Quality

Alex Salki G. McCullough, M. Stainton, R. Hesslein, L. Hendzel

Freshwater InstituteFisheries and Oceans Canada

University of Manitoba

Lake Winnipeg August 1999Lake Winnipeg August 1999

Surface blue-green blooms North Basin Lake Winnipeg

Colors:brown = low chlorophyllyellow to green = high

chlorophyll

(Striking first satellite view of the problem)

Lake Winnipeg Ice Cover April 16, 2005 and South Basin April 16 – 21, 2005

Using satellite imagery to understand Lake Winnipeg ecosystem dynamics

May 26 June 21 July 6 August 27 September 30

Surface temperatures of Lake Winnipeg, 2001. Grey areas indicate land, cloud, or ice (in May). Derived from the U.S. NOAA orbiting Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer.

20th Century Water TemperaturesSouth Basin – present August temps 1.9 C° higher than in 1900North Basin - present September temperatures 1.0 C° higher than in 1900

Greg McCullough, Geography, U of Manitoba

Climate change – water temperature

OutlineImpact of Phosphorus on Water Quality

• Scope of excess phosphorus (eutrophication)

• Studying the impacts of phosphorus – ELA eutrophication research – Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement – Royal Woods Retention Lakes, City of Winnipeg– Lake 885 enclosures, Erickson Manitoba

• Lake Winnipeg ecosystem status– Symptoms of stress, water supply, nutrient sources and loads

• Links to Public Policy

Global Scope of Water Quality Deterioration

United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005> 2,000 authors examine consequences of ecosystem change for humans

Some major conclusions:

• Fresh groundwater supplies are now used faster than they can berecharged and we are depleting assets at the expense of our children.

• The use of phosphorus fertilizers and the rate of phosphorus accumulation in agricultural soils increased nearly threefold between 1960 and 1990.

• 60% of world ecosystems providing service to humankind are in decline.

Canadian Wildlife Service

70% of wetlands have disappeared from the Canadian landscape

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12000

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E CC X AR PL HL EDC EP BL EN LR ES

Topics

Global Science TopicsPeer Reviewed Journal Articles

E = eutrophicationCC = climate change

X = xenobioticsAR = acid rain

PL = phosphorus loadHL = habitat loss

EDC = endocrine disrupting chemicalsEP = eutrophication phosphorus

BL = biodiversity loss

LR = lake regulationEN = eutrophication nitrogen

ES = exotic species

Cambridge Scientific Abstracts

(contaminants, herbicides, etc)

Eutrophication continues as the leading environmental issue

(nutrient enrichment of surface waters)

Studying the impacts of phosphorus

•Phosphorus cycle•ELA research for Laurentian GL•Royal Woods Retention Ponds•Lake 885 enclosures

The Phosphorus Cycle Chambers et al. 2001

Earth Crust < 0.1% P

• P does not exist naturally in the elemental state (unlike N), • Rock (apatite) and soil is the largest P reservoir (Russia, Morocco, Florida),• All atmospheric P derived from erosion, fertilizer drift, industrial emissions,• P exists in only one environmentally active form, PO4

3- the orthophosphate ion.

The impacts of phosphorus on surface waters1. First insights into eutrophication

• Eutrophication (nutrient enrichment) of the Great Lakes began during the 1950s and 1960s with increased inputs of phosphorus, mainly from municipal sewage,

• Scientific understanding of the key role of phosphorus in eutrophication began when the International Joint Commission (IJC) was asked to consider the causes of pollution in the eastern Great Lakes,

• IJC Advisory Boards of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario concluded that in most natural waters the growth of algae is controlled more by the supply of phosphorus than by the supply of nitrogen and that the loading of phosphorus can be controlled more effectively than that of nitrogen.

Experimental Lakes Area Eutrophication Studies

• In 1968, the Canadian government established the Winnipeg Freshwater Institute and the Experimental Lakes Area (ELA) where whole-lake experiments were used to find the cause of Great Lake eutrophication,

• The role of phosphorus was unequivocally and scientifically demonstrated by the experiments on small whole lakes at ELA

Experimental Experimental Lakes AreaLakes Area

Where is the ELA Located?Where is the ELA Located?

Winnange

Porcus

Highwind

Hillock

Dryberry

Point

Dryberry

Teggau

Winnange

EagleManomin

Feist

GeejayHawk

Ethelma

E. Stewart

Dryberry – Lake of the WoodsDrainage

Eagle – English RiverDrainage

Trans Canada Highway (Ontario No. 17)

PineRoad

ELAField Station

ELA Lake 226 Eutrophication Experiment

1973 - 1974

Fertilizer Added g/m2/yrP N C Response

226N 0.59 3.16 6.05 Blue-greens226S none 3.16 6.05 none

226N

226S

C & N

C & N & P

Direct impact on policy Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement 1978

(laundry detergent P ban)

Long-term Trend in Total Phosphorus Concentrations in the Great Lakes

2. Royal Woods Retention Ponds – P additionsstimulate Cyanophytes

Phytoplankton in North and South Royal Woods Lakes 2003

North Lake Phytoplankton Composition

010002000300040005000

1n703 2n703 3n803 4n4903 5n17903

Station and date

Alg

al b

iom

ass

( ug

/L w

et w

eigh

t)

Chlorophytes Chrysophytes CryptophytesBacillariophytes Cyanophytes

South LakePhytoplankton Composition

0200400600800

1s703 2s703 3s803 4s4903 5s17903

Station and dateA

lgal

bio

mas

s (

ug/L

wet

wei

ght)

Chlorophytes Chrysophytes CryptophytesBacillariophytes Cyanophytes

TDP North Lake

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30

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50

60

70

80

90

Da t e S a mpl e d

TDPSouth Lake

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25

Da t e sa mpl e d

TDN North Lake

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100

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300

400

500

600

700

800

Da t e S a mpl e d

TDN South Lake

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100

200

300

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Da t e sa mpl e d

A)

D)

B)

C)

• North Lake -TDP spikes in mid-summer due to additions of city water (July 17-24) to increase water levels in North lake.

• South Lake - TDP only rises slightly

• Total Dissolved Nitrogen remained relatively constant in both lakes

Note: City adds 50µg/L of PO4 to prevent lead dissolution from water pipes.

North

South

TDP TDNTotal Dissolved Phosphorus Total Dissolved Nitrogen

N:P ratios in Royal Woods Lakes

TDN_TDP South Lake

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120

12/ 6 / 03 26/ 6/ 03 10/ 7 / 03 24/ 7/ 03 7/ 8/ 03 21/ 8/ 03 4/ 9/ 03

Date Sampled

Mol

ar R

atio

TDN_TDP North Lake

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120

12 / 6 / 0 3 12 / 7/ 0 3 12 / 8 / 0 3 12 / 9 / 0 3

Date Sampled

Mol

ar R

atio

North Lake: TDN:TDP (arrow) drops accompanied by development of N-fixing bluegreens.

South Lake: TDN:TDP remains relatively constant. No planktonicbluegreens appear.

City water added

3. Lake 885 Enclosure Experiments Nitrogen additions suppress cyanophytes

Barica et al. 1980

Lake 885 Area -2.4 haMean Depth - 2.0 mMax. Chlorophyll – 480 ug/L

Limnocorrals – 10 m diameter

NH4NO3 added weekly to maintain N:P at 15:1.

CC

Aphanizomenon flos-aquae

Microcystis aeruginosa

N additions: suppressed N-fixing A. flos-aquaestimulated non-fixing M. aeruginosa

Lake Winnipeg Ecosystem Status

• Symptoms of stress• Water supply • Nutrient sources and loads

1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988

1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994

Increasing frequency and extent of blue-green algal surface blooms1983 - 1993 vs 1994 - 2003 (G. McCullough 2004 CEOS, U of Manitoba)STRESS

100

50 ug/L

.

1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Statistically significant increase in frequency and extent of blue-greens 1995 - 2005

Increasing phyto- and zooplankton biomass, decreasing biodiversity

Kling 2000

0

3

6

9

12

15

18

mm

3/L

1929 (J-O) 1969 (J-O) 1969 (A) 1994 (A) 1999 (A) 2002 (A) 2003 (A)

L WINNIPEG SETTLED NET PLANKTON VOLUMELAKE MEAN

Bajkovn=500

n = 250 n = 86

n = 33

Salki

Patalas & Salki

n = 43 n = 72 n = 67

Salki 2005

Station 35S11:46 12 August

Turbidity, Chlorophyll

0 2 4 6

10 15 20 25Temperature

0 2 4 6 8 100

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

Depth (m

)

Oxygen

0 800 1600

Carbon dioxide

• Temperature °C• Oxygen mg/L• Chlorophyll-a µg/L• Turbidity mg/L

North Basin stations August 12, 2003

First measurements of water column stratification

Sub-surface changes

48

45S17S

23S

21 35S

23B

1939

23ES

20S

52

52.5

53

53.5

54

-99.5 -99 -98.5 -98 -97.5 -97

<1414-1515-1616-17>20

Extent of low oxygen zone in North Basin Lake Winnipeg2003 August survey.

Stations grouped by depth.Red line is 16 m isobath

Lake Winnipeg North Basin Core 1994

1910

1920

1930

1940

1950

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000

0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1Phosphorous Deposition Rate g/m^2/yr

Year

1.6 g/m^2/yr

Increasing Phosphorus

deposition rate in the North Basin of

Lake Winnipeg

History of past 100 years

Chemical Changes inLake Sediments

Also in South Basin - Mayer et al 2005

Red Water

0.0E+00

5.0E+09

1.0E+10

1.5E+10

2.0E+10

2.5E+10

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

m3

Hesslein 2005

Sask Water

0.0E+00

1.0E+10

2.0E+10

3.0E+10

4.0E+10

5.0E+10

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

Tonn

es

Wpg Water

0.0E+00

1.0E+10

2.0E+10

3.0E+10

4.0E+10

5.0E+10

6.0E+10

7.0E+10

1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000 202

m3

Saskatchewan River inflow – long term decline Water Supply Changes1913 - 2000

Winnipeg River inflow - increase

Claire et al. 1998. CJFAS. Predicted 50% increase in regional(RRB) precipitation with 2X CO2

Red River – increase 1913-1939 vs 1940-2000

250%

33%

14%

High Inter-Annual Variability of Flow

Red River basin phosphorus yield (kg/km2) vs water yield (mm/yr)

Red TP

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1

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3

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5

6

7

8

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

Tonn

esHesslein 2005

Red River Load – High Inter-Annual VariabilityBrunskill 1969-1974 = 5.2 (2.9-10.5) Kt TP/yr

MWS 1994 – 2001 = 6.6 Kt (3.6-11.0) Kt TP/yr

Increasing Red River Phosphorus Loads

Load = Concentration x Flow volumeRed River Concentration[TP] = 29% increase 1970 – 2000

(Mb Water Stewardship)

Red Water

0.0E+00

5.0E+09

1.0E+10

1.5E+10

2.0E+10

2.5E+10

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

m3

Red LoadRed Flow +56%

Red River Flow 1970 – 1990 = 6.4 E10 m31990 - 2000 = 10.0 E10 m3

Lake Winnipeg water supply - increased drainage rates

Lake Winnipeg Watershed 1M km2

LAKE WINNIPEG

5.5 M people20 M livestock (=~100 M people)Rich prairie soils & agriculture

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Rat

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SU MI HU VI ER GB TA BA GS WI

Watershed / Lake Surface Area Ratio10 Largest World Lakes

Great BearTanganyika

Victoria

Superior

BaikalGreat Slave

Winnipeg

MichiganHuron

TP Sources-Red River Basin (64%)-Winnipeg River Basin (13%)-Saskatchewan River Basin (5%)-Assiniboine River Basin (10%)-Atmosphere direct to surface (7%)-Other rivers (1%)

TP Loss-Nelson River outflow (30%)-Retention (70%)(Brunskill (1973), Hesslein (2005) – 25 – 28%)

inflowsoutflows

5%

13%

64%

Lake WinnipegPreliminary PhosphorusBudget 1994 - 2001MB Water Stewardship

10%

7%

30%? (70 – 75%)

Retention 70% ? (25-30%)

Dams

• “Since all the rivers in southern Manitoba drain into Lake Winnipeg, the state of P in the lake is a good barometer for the P problem in the province as a whole.”

- I. Halket, K. Snelgrove, and B. Wiebe, U of Manitoba

Model predicted phosphous concentration in Lake Winnipeg

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1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010Year

Phos

phor

us (u

g/l)

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7

Land

ed W

eigh

t kg

mill

ions

Modelled P Concentration Landed Weight 12 per. Mov. Avg. (Landed Weight)

In-lake TP

Model predicted phosphorus concentrations in Lake Winnipeg

TN:TP

8

13

18

23

28

33

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

Rat

io

LoadingModel Conc.

Hesslein 2005

Non-blue-greens

Blue-greens

Recap of Lake Winnipeg Nutrient Science

• The presence of excessive amounts of algae is a sign of oversupply of phosphorus.

• The presence of blue-green algae is a sign of an oversupply of phosphorus (P) relative to nitrogen (N).

• Variability in drainage basin water yield (and Red River flow) is the major regulator of phosphorus loading to Lake Winnipeg.

Some Watershed Nutrient Sources – Stream Loading

Date STATION NO3 NO2 NH4 TDN SRP TDP

ug/l N ug/l N ug/l N ug/l N ug/l P ug/l P

June 20, 2005 WP 25 660 10 195 2585 1378 1349

June 28, 2005 WP 25 2260 120 148 3820 1368 1327

July 1, 2005 WP 25 1900 200 357 3610 770 755

Arm of LasalleIn Elie at TransCanada Hwy

Date STATION NO3 NO2 NH4 TDN SRP TDP

ug/l N ug/l N ug/l N ug/l N ug/l P ug/l P

June 20, 2005 WP 24 1 17 258 2650 2058 2009

June 28, 2005 WP 24 590 90 343 2760 2156 2094

July 1, 2005 WP 24 2160 240 626 4360 732 705

• “It will be difficult to control the acceleration of the rate of supply of nutrients, metals, and other deleterious substances to Lake Winnipeg, because of the diffuse source of many of these substances”G.J. Brunskill, S.E.M. Elliott, and P. Campbell, 1980

1 10 100

100

1000

Water renewal time (Years)

Aver

age

inflo

w c

once

ntra

tion

(ug

P pe

r L)

Erie

Ontario

Michigan

Superior

Huron (whole)Huron (Main lake)

Georgian BayNorthChannel

Excessive

Permissible

Winnipeg (South Basin)1997

Winnipeg(South Basin)1969

Winnipeg (Lake)1997

10

0.1

1972

1985

Winnipeg SB1930

Lake Winnipeg in comparison to other large world lakes

Victoria

Great SlaveGreat Bear

Baikal

Tanganyika

After Vollenweider

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30

40

Chl

orph

yll -

a (u

g/L)

BA GB GS SU HU MI TA ER VI WI

Summer Chlorophyll-a Concentration10 Largest World Lakes

Baikal

TanganyikaMichigan

Winnipeg

Great Bear

Superior

ErieVictoria

Great Slave

Huron

The most eutrophic of the largest lakes

Algal Response to Phosphorus

Loading Reduction in

Western Basin of

Lake Erie

Public Policy Linkages• Lack of federal support for Lake Winnipeg Research

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M E S B T V H W GS GBLake

Research Effort on Great World LakesPeer Reviewed Journal Articles

MichiganErie

Superior

BaikalTanganyika

VictoriaHuron

Winnipeg (1.5)

Great SlaveGreat Bear

Estimated number of federal researchers investigating:

Lake Winnipeg ~1.5/yr

Great Lakes > ~ 50/yr

1999 – 2005.

“It is clear that Lake Winnipeg is an aquatic ecosystem under stress. Although the causes of the problems are understood in general, our scientific knowledge of the Lake is limited and insufficient to answer some of the specific questions posed by Lake managers”- G.B. Ayles and D.M. Rosenberg (2005) Joint Federal-Provincial Science Workshop, November 2004

Public Policy Linkages for further consideration

• Developing appropriate, cost-effective nutrient management strategies for municipal wastewater treatment is a priority

• A healthy Lake Winnipeg is not only an ecological and scientific imperative, it is also an economic and social one.

• Lake Winnipeg remediation will require establishment of a Lake Winnipeg Management Plan that integrates all watershed interests.

Satellite image of surface algal bloom, North BasinLake Winnipeg August 29, 2005, the largest ever observed on the lake(G. McCullough CEOS)

Normal Lake Trout

Lake Trout from acidified Lake 302

Effects of acid rainfall on lake trout growth based on lake acidification research at the Experimental Lakes Area.