Quantitative Assessment of Water Quality Improvement by Reducing External Loadings at Lake Erhai, Southwest China

Falu Gong, Liancong Luo (), Huiyun Li (), Lan Chen, Rufeng Zhang, Guizhu Wu, Jian Zhang, Weiqiang Shi, Fan Zhang, Hao Zhang and Ting Sun
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Falu Gong: Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650504, China
Liancong Luo: Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650504, China
Huiyun Li: Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
Lan Chen: Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650504, China
Rufeng Zhang: Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650504, China
Guizhu Wu: Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650504, China
Jian Zhang: Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650504, China
Weiqiang Shi: Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650504, China
Fan Zhang: Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650504, China
Hao Zhang: Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650504, China
Ting Sun: Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650504, China

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 6, 1-13

Abstract: To quantitatively evaluate the effects on water quality improvement caused by reducing external loadings entering Lake Erhai through inflow rivers, a one-dimensional hydrodynamic and ecological model (DYRESM–CAEDYM) was set up to simulate the water quality and water level variations. The calibrated and validated model was used to conduct six scenarios for evaluating the water quality responses to different amounts of external loading reduction at Lake Erhai. The results show (1) the total nitrogen (TN) concentration of Lake Erhai will be higher than 0.5 mg/L without any watershed pollution control during April–November 2025, which cannot meet Grade II standard of the China Surface Water Environmental Quality Standards (GB3838-2002). (2) External loading reductions can significantly reduce the concentrations of nutrients and Chla at Lake Erhai. The effects of water quality improvement will be proportional to the reduction rate of external loading reductions. (3) Internal release might be an important source of pollution It needs to be seriously considered as well as external loading for mitigating the eutrophication at Lake Erhai in the future.

Keywords: external loadings; water quality; DYRESM–CAEDYM; Lake Erhai (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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