Impact of forest fires on water quality and nutrient dynamics in burned streams in Patagonia.
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| Titel: | Impact of forest fires on water quality and nutrient dynamics in burned streams in Patagonia. |
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| Autoren: | Brand C; Centro de Investigación Esquel de Montaña y Estepa Patagónica (CONICET-UNPSJB), Argentina; Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San Juan Bosco, Esquel, Argentina; Laboratorio de Investigaciones en Ecología y Sistemática Animal (LIESA), Argentina. Electronic address: cecibrand1978@gmail.com., Dromaz M; Centro de Investigación Esquel de Montaña y Estepa Patagónica (CONICET-UNPSJB), Argentina., Carignano ML; Laboratorio de Química, INVAP, Bariloche, Argentina., Ravasi C; Laboratorio de Química, INVAP, Bariloche, Argentina., Assef Y; Centro de Investigación Esquel de Montaña y Estepa Patagónica (CONICET-UNPSJB), Argentina; Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San Juan Bosco, Esquel, Argentina; Laboratorio de Investigaciones en Ecología y Sistemática Animal (LIESA), Argentina. |
| Quelle: | The Science of the total environment [Sci Total Environ] 2025 Dec 01; Vol. 1006, pp. 180887. Date of Electronic Publication: 2025 Nov 10. |
| Publikationsart: | Journal Article |
| Sprache: | English |
| Info zur Zeitschrift: | Publisher: Elsevier Country of Publication: Netherlands NLM ID: 0330500 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1879-1026 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 00489697 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Sci Total Environ Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: Amsterdam, Elsevier. |
| MeSH-Schlagworte: | Water Quality* , Environmental Monitoring* , Wildfires* , Rivers*/chemistry , Forests* , Water Pollutants, Chemical*/analysis, Argentina ; Phosphorus/analysis ; Nitrogen/analysis ; Nutrients/analysis |
| Abstract: | Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. Wildfires affect extensive areas worldwide each year, causing profound impacts. Their effects on water quality vary depending on soil characteristics, hydrologic regimes, and fire severity. In March 2021, a large wildfire affected over 13,000 ha of Patagonian Forest in Argentina. To assess its impact on water quality, four streams draining burned catchments and four reference streams were selected. Fire-related effects were observed in conductivity, total suspended solids (TSS), and nutrients. Conductivity and TSS peaked initially at 144.5 mg/l (1.7× than reference sites) and 30.5 mg/l (22.1×), respectively. Study-wide trends indicate a sustained enrichment of nitrogen forms in burned sites and a decline in phosphorus levels. Initial total phosphorus (TP) concentrations reached 112.5 μg/l (17×). The highest total nitrogen (TN) value was observed at last high-flow sampling in burned sites (845.6 μg/l, 10.4×), mainly driven by an increase in NO₃ - + NO₂ - . TN export overall study average was 325.8 kg/km 2 /yr (11×), while TP export reached its maximum at the first high-flow period. Most metal concentrations exhibited similar trends in burned and reference streams, peaking after the first post-fire rainfall, with significantly higher levels of arsenic in burned sites. These findings underscore the significant and lasting impacts of wildfires on aquatic ecosystems, highlighting the need for management strategies that mitigate the consequences of such extreme events on freshwater biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Post-fire conditions require a focused assessment due to potential synergistic impacts on water quality. (Copyright © 2025 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.) |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Forest fire; Headwaters; Nutrients; Water quality; Wildfires |
| Substance Nomenclature: | 27YLU75U4W (Phosphorus) N762921K75 (Nitrogen) 0 (Water Pollutants, Chemical) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20251111 Date Completed: 20251127 Latest Revision: 20251127 |
| Update Code: | 20251128 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.180887 |
| PMID: | 41218525 |
| Datenbank: | MEDLINE |
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Nájsť tento článok vo Web of Science | Abstract: | Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.<br />Wildfires affect extensive areas worldwide each year, causing profound impacts. Their effects on water quality vary depending on soil characteristics, hydrologic regimes, and fire severity. In March 2021, a large wildfire affected over 13,000 ha of Patagonian Forest in Argentina. To assess its impact on water quality, four streams draining burned catchments and four reference streams were selected. Fire-related effects were observed in conductivity, total suspended solids (TSS), and nutrients. Conductivity and TSS peaked initially at 144.5 mg/l (1.7× than reference sites) and 30.5 mg/l (22.1×), respectively. Study-wide trends indicate a sustained enrichment of nitrogen forms in burned sites and a decline in phosphorus levels. Initial total phosphorus (TP) concentrations reached 112.5 μg/l (17×). The highest total nitrogen (TN) value was observed at last high-flow sampling in burned sites (845.6 μg/l, 10.4×), mainly driven by an increase in NO₃ <sup>-</sup> + NO₂ <sup>-</sup> . TN export overall study average was 325.8 kg/km <sup>2</sup> /yr (11×), while TP export reached its maximum at the first high-flow period. Most metal concentrations exhibited similar trends in burned and reference streams, peaking after the first post-fire rainfall, with significantly higher levels of arsenic in burned sites. These findings underscore the significant and lasting impacts of wildfires on aquatic ecosystems, highlighting the need for management strategies that mitigate the consequences of such extreme events on freshwater biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Post-fire conditions require a focused assessment due to potential synergistic impacts on water quality.<br /> (Copyright © 2025 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.) |
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| ISSN: | 1879-1026 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.180887 |