Skip to Main Content
 

Global Search Box

 
 
 
 

Files

File List

Full text release has been delayed at the author's request until December 15, 2026

ETD Abstract Container

Abstract Header

The quantity, form and location of phosphorus across a small agricultural watershed

Gentine, Joseph Anthony
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5360-1094
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1730804287734859

Abstract Details

2024, Master of Science, Ohio State University, Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology.
A major driver of eutrophication in aquatic ecosystems is phosphorus (P) pollution often derived from upstream agricultural or livestock production. While controlling P loss from these sources is essential, P export to lakes and estuaries may also be influenced by P storage and transformation within lotic ecosystems. At large scales P pools tend to be larger in places with high P inputs (i.e. agriculture and urban settings). However, spatial patterns in P storage in different pools (plants, algae, and sediment) across small watersheds with variable habitats has received little attention, but likely varies considerably with flow regime and stream size. I examined the form, mass, and location of phosphorus stored in an agriculturally dominated small watershed (20 km2) in northwest Ohio, USA. I measured the P stored in sediment, plant, and algae pools in 15 reaches varying in size and flow regime from grassed waterways to a third order stream. Sediment P was greater than 60% of the total benthic P mass in all reaches, suggesting processes determining streambed sediment storage also drive phosphorus storage. Additionally, measurements indicate that streambed sediment acted as a dissolved phosphorus sink across all reaches sampled. However, sediment tended to be saturated with P at downstream reaches, indicating that the role of sediment as a P sink may diminish in downstream reaches. Sites that were dry for some or most of the year contained a large portion of the benthic P located in this stream network, suggesting that wet/dry cycles are important drivers of P cycling in much of the stream network. Thus, the impact of streams on P exports may vary substantially within small watersheds.
Jim Hood (Advisor)
Steve Hovick (Committee Member)
Vinayak Shedekar (Committee Member)
60 p.
Biogeochemistry; Ecology; Environmental Science
biogeochemistry, phosphorus, streams, rivers, nutrient cycling, aquatic ecosystem

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Gentine, J. A. (2024). The quantity, form and location of phosphorus across a small agricultural watershed [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1730804287734859

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Gentine, Joseph. The quantity, form and location of phosphorus across a small agricultural watershed. 2024. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1730804287734859.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Gentine, Joseph. "The quantity, form and location of phosphorus across a small agricultural watershed." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2024. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1730804287734859

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1730804287734859
© 2024, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.