A pollutant load hierarchical allocation method integrated in an environmental capacity management system for Zhushan Bay, Taihu Lake

Abstract

An environmental capacity management (ECM) system was developed to help practically implement a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for a key bay in a highly eutrophic lake in China. The ECM system consists of a simulation platform for pollutant load calculation and a pollutant load hierarchical allocation (PLHA) system. The simulation platform was developed by linking the Environmental Fluid Dynamics Code (EFDC) and Water Quality Analysis Simulation Program (WASP). In the PLHA, pollutant loads were allocated top-down in several levels based on characteristics of the pollutant sources. Different allocation methods could be used for the different levels with the advantages of each method combined over the entire allocation. Zhushan Bay of Taihu Lake, one of the most eutrophic lakes in China, was selected as a case study. The allowable loads of total nitrogen, total phosphorus, ammonia, and chemical oxygen demand were found to be 2122.2, 94.9, 1230.4, and 5260.0t·yr−1, respectively. The PLHA for the case study consists of 5 levels. At level 0, loads are allocated to those from the lakeshore direct drainage, atmospheric deposition, internal release, and tributary inflows. At level 1 the loads allocated to tributary inflows are allocated to the 3 tributaries. At level 2, the loads allocated to one inflow tributary are allocated to upstream areas and local sources along the tributary. At level 3, the loads allocated to local sources are allocated to the point and non-point sources from different towns. At level 4, the loads allocated to non-point sources in each town are allocated to different villages. Compared with traditional forms of pollutant load allocation methods, PLHA can combine the advantages of different methods which put different priority weights on equity and efficiency, and the PLHA is easy to understand for stakeholders and more flexible to adjust when applied in practical cases.