Phosphorus release: A biogeochemical insight from a restored lakeside wetland in the Yangtze-Huaihe region, China

The heavy intensification of agriculture in East China since the 1980s caused the decrease of lake area and water storage capacity with impediment of regulation, lake eutrophication and frequent floods. Many restoration projects have been conducted. However, the knowledge of biogeochemical factors that drive nutrient cycles during the early stage of restoration is still limited. We studied the effect of the remediation of a patch of near-shore shallow wetland on the northern bank of Chaohu Lake in the Yangtze-Huaihe region, China, which was used as rice paddy for many years, on the behavior of phosphorus. Redox potential (ORP), temperature and dissolved oxygen were monitored in situ from May 2006 to November 2007. Samples of soil pore water were collected during this time for the determination of different forms of iron and phosphorus. ORP showed a clear transition of the wetland soil from an oxidized state in winter to a reduced state in summer. The decrease of ORP correlated with the release of large amounts of Fe and P. The maxima of total dissolved Fe and total dissolved P in the summer of the second year were (13.8 +/- 6.8) mg/L and (0.88 +/- 0.27) mg/L, respectively. It is worth noticing that P concentration far exceeded the critical value of lake eutrophication (0.02 mg/L). The pressure of P release to the adjacent lake during the first two years of wetland restoration from rice fields should be taken into account by environmental policy makers.