Modelling diffuse nutrient flow in eutrophication control scenarios

Abstract

The Swedish Water Management Research Programme (VASTRA) focuses on the development and demonstration of tools for more efficient eutrophication control when implementing the EU water framework directive in Sweden. During the first half of the programme, models for nitrogen flow were developed, and at present, similar models for phosphorus are under construction (e.g. HBV-P). The programme is interdisciplinary, and scientists are collaborating in actor-games and focus group evaluations including scenario analysis. The scenarios modelled in VASTRA phase I, show that (i) changed agricultural practices can be the most effective and least expensive way to reduce nitrogen transport from land to the sea; (ii) constructed agricultural wetlands may only have small impact on riverine nitrogen transport in some regions, due to natural hydrometeorological dynamics; (iii) removing planktivorous fish may be an efficient way of reducing the algal concentrations in lakes without the undesired side-effect of increased nutrient load to the down-stream river system. In VASTRA phase II, one of the highlights will be interdisciplinary scenario-modelling of different measure strategies in a pilot catchment of southern Sweden (Rönne å).