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Relationship of Impoundment to Water Quality
Author(s) -
Love S. Kenneth
Publication year - 1961
Publication title -
journal ‐ american water works association
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.466
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1551-8833
pISSN - 0003-150X
DOI - 10.1002/j.1551-8833.1961.tb00696.x
Subject(s) - alkalinity , turbidity , water quality , environmental science , fish kill , environmental chemistry , total dissolved solids , dissolution , sedimentation , sediment , environmental engineering , chemistry , nutrient , algal bloom , ecology , phytoplankton , geology , biology , paleontology , organic chemistry
Among the many things that affect water quality is impoundment. Water quality may be improved or degraded by impoundment. This article discusses some of the more significant beneficial and detrimental effects of impoundment and the principal factors causing changes in water quality. Important beneficial effects of impoundment on water quality include: reduction of turbidity, silica, color (in certain reservoirs), and coliform bacteria; evening out of sharp variations in dissolved minerals, hardness, pH, and alkalinity; reductions in temperature, which sometimes benefit fish life; entrapment of sediment; and, storage of water for release in dry periods for the dilution of polluted waters. In addition to benefits, impoundment also has certain undesirable effects, including: increased growth of algae, which may give rise to tastes and odors; reduction in dissolved oxygen in the deeper parts of the reservoirs; increase in carbon dioxide and frequently iron, manganese, and alkalinity, especially near the bottom; increases in dissolved solids and hardness as a result of evaporation and dissolution of rock materials; and, reductions in temperature, which, although sometimes beneficial, may also be detrimental to fish life.