The aim of this study was to investigate the post-dam conditions of the loads and yields of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN), orthophosphate (DIP, silicate (DSi) and total phosphorous (TP) in the Lower São Francisco riverestuary (NE-Brazil) after the river was regulated to a constant flow by the dams. Loads and yields of monthly measurements performed from November 2000 to March 2002 at a gauging station downstream of the dams (80 km from the coast) showed 4.1 × 10 3 t/yr and 0.006 t/km 2/yr of DIN, 0.2 × 10 3 t/yr and 0.002 t/km2/yr of DIP, and 448 × 10 3 t/yr and 0.71 t/km 2/yr of DSi, respectively. Over the last 15 years, DIN loads reduced by 94 % and DSi by 31%. The river turned into an oligotrophic system with primary production limited by nitrogen and nutrient yields being among the lowest of Brazilian coastal rivers.
CITATION STYLE
Medeiros, P. R. P., Knoppers, B. A., Cavalcante, G. H., & de Souza, W. F. L. (2011). Changes in nutrient loads (N, P and Si) in the São Francisco estuary after the construction of dams. Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology, 54(4), 387–397. https://doi.org/10.1590/S1516-89132011000200022
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