Abstract
Ecosystem services provided by wetland systems presently play a pivotal role in intensive cropland as water purification from agricultural pollution. A field trial was conducted in 2014 to evaluate herbicide runoff reduction and retention using a 0.32 ha constructed surface flow wetland (CSFW) at the outlet of a 6 ha agricultural basin. To simulate an extreme pulse contamination, the CSFW was flooded with a runoff contaminated with metolachlor, and terbuthylazine and two other subsequent floods with pure water were applied 21 and 65 days later. Results show that the CSFW can reduce runoff concentration of metolachlor and terbuthylazine by a factor of 45–80 even in extreme flooding conditions. Herbicides retention in the CSFW was reversible, and the second and third floods mobilized 14–31 and 3.5–7.0% respectively, of the amount detected in the first flood. The CSFW performs a high buffer capacity for herbicides, capable to provide water purification service, protecting downstream surface water. Moreover, mitigation capacity of a CSFW for a heavy runoff from a 10 ha basin is 90% for every 50 m in length of a 15 m wide wetland. This confirms that the implementation of CSFWs in agro-systems can improve the sustainability of agricultural production.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Anderson, B. S., B. M. Phillips, J. W. Hunt, B. Largay, R. Shihadeh & R. S. Tjeerdema, 2011. Pesticide and toxicity reduction using an integrated vegetated treatment system. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 30: 1036–1043.
Berghahn, R., S. Mohr, V. Hübner, R. Schmiediche, I. Schmiedling, E. Svetich-Will & R. Schmidt, 2012. Effects of repeated insecticide pulses on macroinvertebrate drift in indoor stream mesocosms. Aquatic Toxicology 122–123: 56–66.
Bjergager, M.-B. A., M. L. Hanson, L. Lissemore, N. Henriquez, K. R. Solomon & N. Cedergreen, 2011. Synergy in microcosms with environmentally realistic concentrations of prochloraz and esfenvalerate. Aquatic Toxicology 101: 412–422.
Borin, M. & D. Tocchetto, 2007. Five year water and nitrogen balance for a constructed surface flow wetland treating agricultural waters. Science of the Total Environment 380: 38–47.
Brinson, M. M. & D. S. Eckles, 2011. U.S. Department of Agriculture conservation program and practice effects on wetland ecosystem services: a synthesis. Ecological Applications 21: S116–S127.
Cardinali, A., S. Otto & G. Zanin, 2013. Herbicides runoff in vegetative filter strips: evaluation and validation of a recent rainfall return period model. International Journal of Environmental and Analytical Chemistry 1: 1–10.
Dabrowski, M., S. K. C. Peall, A. J. Reinecke, M. Liess & R. Schulz, 2002. Runoff-related pesticide input into the Lourens River, South Africa: basic data for exposure assessment and risk mitigation at the catchment scale. Water, Air, Soil Pollution 135: 265–283.
Daily, G. C. & A. Matson, 2008. Ecosystem services: from theory to implementation. PNAS 105: 9455–9456.
De Groot, R., M. Stuip, M. Finlayson & N. Davidson, 2006. Wetlands: guidance for valuing the benefits derived from wetland ecosystem services. Ramsar Technical Report No. 3 CBD Technical Series 27. Gland.
Di Guardo, A., D. Calamari, G. Zanin, A. Consalter & D. Mackay, 1994. A fugacity model of pesticide runoff to surface water: development and validation. Chemosphere 28: 511–531.
Dyson, J. S., S. Beulke, C. D. Brown & M. C. G. Lane, 2002. Adsorption and degradation of the weak acid mesotrione in soil and environmental fate implications. Organic compounds in the environment. Journal of Environmental Quality 31: 613–618.
Durel, L., A. Estrada-Peña, M. Franc, H. Mehlhorn & J. Bouyer, 2015. Integrated fly management in European ruminant operations from the perspective of directive 2009/128/EC on sustainable use of pesticide. Parasitology Research 114: 379–389.
Freitas, L. G., C. W. Götz, M. Ruff, H. P. Singer & S. R. Müller, 2004. Quantification of the new triketone herbicides, sulcotrione and mesotrione, and other important herbicides and metabolites, at the ng/l level in surface waters using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Journal of Chromatography A 1028: 277–286.
Gregoire, C., D. Elsaesser, D. Huguenot, J. Lange, T. Lebeau, A. Merli, R. Mose, E. Passeport, S. Payraudeau, T. Schütz, R. Schulz, G. Tapia-Padilla, J. Tournebize, M. Trevisan & A. Wanko, 2008. Mitigation of agricultural nonpoint-source pesticide pollution in artificial wetland ecosystems. Environmental Chemistry Letters 7: 205–231.
Hinman, M. L. & S. J. Klaine, 1992. Uptake and translocation of selected organic pesticides by rooted aquatic plant Hydrilla verticillata Royle. Environmental Science & Technology 26: 609–613.
Kay, P., A. C. Edwards & M. Foulger, 2009. A review of the efficacy of contemporary agricultural stewardship measures for ameliorating water pollution problems of key concern to the UK water industry. Agricultural Systems 99: 67–75.
Lazzaro, L., S. Otto & G. Zanin, 2008. Role of hedgerows in intercepting spray drift: evaluation and modelling of the effects. Agriculture Ecosystems and Environment 123: 317–327.
Locke, M. A., M. A. Weaver, R. M. Zablotowicz, R. W. Steinriede, C. T. Bryson & R. F. Cullum, 2011. Constructed wetlands as a component of the agricultural landscape: mitigation of herbicides in simulated runoff from upland drainage areas. Chemosphere 83: 1532–8.
MacBean, C., 2012. The Pesticide Manual, Sixteenth ed. British Crop Protection Council Publication, Alton.
Mackay, D., W. Y. Shiu & K. C. Ma, 1997. Illustrated handbook of physical-chemical properties and environmental fate for organic chemicals. In Pesticide Chemicals, Vol. V. Lewis Publisher, Boca Raton.
Maes, J., B. Egoh, L. Willemen, C. Liquete, P. Vihervaara, J. P. Schagner, B. Grizzetti, E. G. Drakou, A. La Notte, G. Zulian, F. Bouraoui, M. L. Parachini, L. Braat & G. Bidoglio, 2012. Mapping ecosystem services for policy support and decision making in the European Union. Ecosystem Services 1: 31–39.
Maillard, E. S., E. Payraudeau, C. Faivre, S. Gangloff Gregoire & G. Imfeld, 2011. Removal of pesticide mixtures in a storm water wetland collecting runoff from a vineyard catchment. Science of Total Environment 409: 2317–2324.
Maucieri, M., M. Salvato, J. Tamiazzo & M. Borin, 2014. Biomass production and soil organic carbon accumulation in a free water surface constructed wetland treating agricultural wastewater in North Eastern Italy. Ecological Engineering 70: 422–428.
MEA, Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, 2005. Ecosystems and Human Well-Being: Wetlands and Water. Island Press, Washington, DC.
Otto, S., L. Riello, R.-A. Düring, H. E. Hummel & G. Zanin, 1997. Herbicide dissipation and dynamics modelling in three different tillage systems. Chemosphere 4: 163–178.
Otto, S., A. Cardinali, E. Marotta, C. Paradisi & G. Zanin, 2012. Effect of vegetative filter strips on herbicide runoff under various types of rainfall. Chemosphere 88: 113–119.
Power, A. J., 2010. Ecosystem services and agriculture: tradeoffs and synergies. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, Biological Sciences 365: 2959–2971.
Reichenberger, S., M. Bach, A. Skitschak & H. G. Frede, 2007. Mitigation strategies to reduce pesticide inputs into ground- and surface water and their effectiveness; A review. Science of the Total Environment 384: 1–35.
Rawlings, J. O., S. G. Pantula & D. A. Dickey, 1998. Applied regression analysis: a research tool, 2nd ed. Springer, New York.
StatSoft Inc., 2011. Statistica (data analysis software system), version 10. http://www.statsoft.com StatSoft, Inc. Tulsa.
Stehle, S., D. Elsaesser, C. Gregoire, G. Imfeld, E. Niehaus, E. Passeport, S. Payraudeau, R. B. Schäfer, J. Tournebize & R. Schulz, 2011. Pesticide risk mitigation by vegetated treatment systems: a meta-analysis. Journal of Environmental Quality 40: 1068–1080.
Tanner, C. C., C. Howard-Williams, M. D. Tomer & R. Lowrance, 2013. Bringing together science and policy to protect and enhance wetland ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes. Ecological Engineering 56: 1–4.
Tomlin, C. D. S., 2006. The Pesticide Manual, 14th ed. British Crop Protection Council Publications, Alton.
Tournebize, J., E. Passeport, C. Chaumont, C. Fesneau, A. Guenne & B. Vincent, 2013. Pesticide de-contamination of surface waters as a wetland ecosystem service in agricultural landscapes. Ecological Engineering 56: 51–59.
Vianello, M., C. Vischetti, L. Scarponi & G. Zanin, 2005. Herbicide losses in runoff events from a field with a low slope: role of a vegetative filter strip. Chemosphere 61: 717–725.
Vymazal, J. & T. Brezinovà, 2015. The use of constructed wetlands for removal of pesticides from agricultural runoff and drainage: a review. Environment International 75: 11–20.
Acknowledgments
This research was carried out with financial support of GRIMiCID project 2013–2015, within the Plan for the Rural Development (Piano per lo Sviluppo Rurale, PSR Misura 124) of the Veneto Region. The authors would like to thank Dr A. Cardinali for her help in the lab part of this work and Dr. Francesco Ferrarese for the Digital Elevation Model of the Veneto Region (Fig. 1).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
There is no potential conflicts of interest.
Human animal rights and informed consent
This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.
Additional information
Guest editors: Pierluigi Viaroli, Marco Bartoli & Jan Vymazal / Wetlands Biodiversity and Processes: Tools for Management and Conservation
Electronic supplementary material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Pappalardo, S.E., Otto, S., Gasparini, V. et al. Mitigation of herbicide runoff as an ecosystem service from a constructed surface flow wetland. Hydrobiologia 774, 193–202 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-015-2375-1
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-015-2375-1