Author(s): Xiaoyu Zhang; Yuntong She; Yang Liu; Wenming Zhang

Linked Author(s): Xiaoyu Zhang

Keywords: River ice; Ice break-up monitoring; Water quality; Temporal and spatial variations

Abstract: Rivers in cold regions are ice-affected for some periods of a year. However, the influence of river ice cover and drifting ice floes on water quality remains understudied, especially during the ice breakup period when the river changes from fully ice-covered to open water. In this study, we investigated the temporal and spatial variations of different nitrogen species (TN, TON, NO3-N, and NH4-N), chloride (Cl-), total organic carbon (TOC), and total suspended solids (TSS) using data collected during two breakup periods on the North Saskatchewan River at Edmonton, Canada. Spatial variabilities of nitrogen species and Cl- concentrations were similar in both years, with elevated concentrations at the two downstream cross-sections (Rundle Park and NE Henday) compared with the upstream five cross-sections. TN concentration exhibited the strongest transverse variation at NE Henday, with higher concentrations near the right bank, consistent with the transverse dispersion pattern from the Gold Bar WWTP. The temporal trends of nitrogen and Cl- followed similar patterns, changing across different stages of the breakup. Possible factors such as river discharge, water level, precipitation, temperature, and ice concentration were analyzed for their effects.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.64697/978-90-835589-7-4_41WC-P1657-cd

Year: 2025