Water quality trends in the Three Gorges Reservoir region before and after impoundment (1992–2016)

Abstract

Reservoirs are essential for the wellbeing of human societies, but can also be subject to negative ecological impacts. The Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) in the upper Yangtze River is remarkable for its size and engineering; however, its effects on water quality are poorly understood. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to describe long-term (1992–2016) monitoring. It showed that the chemical oxygen demand (COD, via the potassium permanganate index) and total phosphorus (TP) have decreased 40.9% ± 9.9% and 22.2% ± 9.7% respectively in the TGR mainstream between impoundment in June 2003 and 2016, while total nitrogen (TN) and ammonium (NH4-N) have increased 1.3% ± 2.4% and 8.2% ± 2.6%. In addition, phytoplankton biomass has increased by a factor of 2.7 (1.1–4.8) over pre-impoundment levels in the mainstream, and tributary algal blooms have increased in frequency since 2004. The reductions in COD and TP were caused primarily by decreases in water flow speed, which lead to sediment settlement. The anti-seasonal operation pattern and water volume increased TGR may also increases the dilution capacity. TN and ammonium are less affected by sediment deposition and have increased slightly under intensified human activities. Decreased water flow speeds and nutrient enrichment have promoted increases in algal biomass, leading to blooms in tributary backwater zones. In situ experiments indicate that phytoplankton growth in the TGR is phosphorus limited during all seasons. Therefore, controlling phosphorus will reduce the short-term eutrophication potential in the reservoir. However, concurrent control of nitrogen and phosphorus inputs are necessary in the long term.