Abstract
Core Ideas: Bioreactors can be designed to remove nitrate from drainage ditches. Designing bioreactors for ditch drainage requires site-specific flexibility. All mid-Atlantic ditch bioreactors tested removed nitrate from drainage water. Practical concerns will require adjustments to design and installation. There is strong interest in adapting denitrifying bioreactors to mid-Atlantic drainage systems to help address Chesapeake Bay water quality goals. Three ditch drainage-oriented bioreactors were constructed in 2015 in Maryland to evaluate site-specific design and installation concerns and nitrate (NO3–N) removal. All three bioreactor types removed NO3–N, as measured by load and/or concentration reduction, showing promise for denitrifying bioreactors in the mid-Atlantic's low gradient Coastal Plain landscape. The ditch diversion bioreactor (25% NO3–N load reduction; 0.97 g NO3–N removed m−3 d−1) and the sawdust denitrification wall adjacent to a ditch (>90% NO3–N concentration reduction; 1.9–2.9 g NO3–N removed m−3 d−1) had removal rates within range of the literature. The in-ditch bioreactor averaged 65% NO3–N concentration reduction, but sedimentation is expected to be one of the biggest challenges. A robust water balance is critical for future assessment of bioreactors’ contribution to water quality improvement in low gradient mid-Atlantic landscapes.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1-5 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Agricultural and Environmental Letters |
Volume | 2 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2017 |
Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:Copyright © 2017 by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.