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Record 2011 Spring Flood of the Mississippi River: How Much Nitrate Was Exported from Its Largest Distributary, the Atchafalaya River, into the Gulf of Mexico?
The Mississippi River Flood of 2011 was a record-breaking flood that required the opening of the Morganza Spillway for only the second time since its completion in 1954. The opening brought a large quantity of nitrogen-rich Mississippi River water into the Atchafalaya River, causing widespread inundation in the river corridor wetlands and flood plains. A rapid sampling study was conducted from May 14 through July 20 at the Atchafalaya River’s inflow and outflow locations to determine nitrate transport and retention of the basin during a historic flood event. The goal was to test the hypothesis that riverine wetlands and floodplains in the Lower Mississippi River Basin (LMRB) function as a significant sink for nitrate during an extreme flood event. Based on intensive sampling data, a total nitrate mass of 97,100 Mg entering and 93,500 Mg leaving the Atchafalaya for the 10-week high flood period was estimated. This large quantity of nitrate export represents approximately 54% of the reported long-term average annual nitrate output from the Atchafalaya River Basin. The marginal 4% mass reduction during such a record flood suggests that riverine wetlands and floodplains of the LMRB require substantial engineering to become an effective sink for riverine nitrate.
Record 2011 Spring Flood of the Mississippi River: How Much Nitrate Was Exported from Its Largest Distributary, the Atchafalaya River, into the Gulf of Mexico?
The Mississippi River Flood of 2011 was a record-breaking flood that required the opening of the Morganza Spillway for only the second time since its completion in 1954. The opening brought a large quantity of nitrogen-rich Mississippi River water into the Atchafalaya River, causing widespread inundation in the river corridor wetlands and flood plains. A rapid sampling study was conducted from May 14 through July 20 at the Atchafalaya River’s inflow and outflow locations to determine nitrate transport and retention of the basin during a historic flood event. The goal was to test the hypothesis that riverine wetlands and floodplains in the Lower Mississippi River Basin (LMRB) function as a significant sink for nitrate during an extreme flood event. Based on intensive sampling data, a total nitrate mass of 97,100 Mg entering and 93,500 Mg leaving the Atchafalaya for the 10-week high flood period was estimated. This large quantity of nitrate export represents approximately 54% of the reported long-term average annual nitrate output from the Atchafalaya River Basin. The marginal 4% mass reduction during such a record flood suggests that riverine wetlands and floodplains of the LMRB require substantial engineering to become an effective sink for riverine nitrate.
Record 2011 Spring Flood of the Mississippi River: How Much Nitrate Was Exported from Its Largest Distributary, the Atchafalaya River, into the Gulf of Mexico?
BryantMason, April (author) / Jun Xu, Y. (author)
Journal of Hydrologic Engineering ; 18 ; 590-594
2012-05-25
52013-01-01 pages
Article (Journal)
Electronic Resource
English
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