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IDENTIFICATION EFFICIENCY IN GROUNDWATER ADJACENT TO DITCHES WITHIN CONSTRUCTED RIPARIAN WETLANDS: KANKAKEE WATERSHED, ILLINOIS-INDIANA, U.S.A.
Citation:
Sidle*, W C. AND J A. Goodrich*. IDENTIFICATION EFFICIENCY IN GROUNDWATER ADJACENT TO DITCHES WITHIN CONSTRUCTED RIPARIAN WETLANDS: KANKAKEE WATERSHED, ILLINOIS-INDIANA, U.S.A. Trevors, J.T. (ed.), JOURNAL OF WATER, AIR, AND SOIL POLLUTION. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Hingham, MA, 144(1):391-404, (2003).
Description:
Dual isotope evaluations of NO3 in groundwater adjacent to ditches within constructed riparian wetlands across the Kankakee water-shed may assist the determination of denitrification efficiency. Groundwater sampling indicates the NO3 -N exceeded 10 mg 1-1 in constructed riparian wetlands but not in native wetlands within the riparian zones of the Kankakee basin. An apparent local empirical threshold for nitrification occurs in groundwater near ditches with less than 1:11 depth to width dimensions within similar hydrogeology. The 15N and 18O composition of groundwater nitrate varies widely in these constructed riparian wetlands. Groundwater nitrate associated with broader ditches (e.g. 1:35) most closely matches the denitrification isotope signature of native riparian wetlands in the basin. The geometry of various cut and fill landforms may need evaluation in engineering designs for constructed riparian wetlands to ensure the establishment of local natural groundwater flow conditions for efficient nitrate attenuation.