The fate of 17β-estradiol in snowmelt from a field with a history of manure application: A laboratory simulation and field study.

17β-estradiol is a naturally occurring estrogen, and livestock manure applied to agricultural fields is a major source to the environment. Liquid swine manure is widely applied to agricultural fields in the Canadian Prairies, a region where the majority of the annual runoff occurs during a brief snowmelt period over frozen soil. Transport of estrogens from manure amendments to soil during this important hydrological period is not well understood but is critical to mitigating the snowmelt-driven offsite transport of estrogens.

Release of phosphorus and metal(loid)s from manured soils to floodwater during a laboratory simulation of snowmelt flooding.

Phosphorus (P) and metal accumulation in manured agricultural soils and subsequent losses to waterways have been extensively studied; however, the magnitudes and the factors governing their losses during spring snowmelt flooding are less known. We examined the P and metal release from long-term manured soil to floodwater under simulated snowmelt flooding with recent manure additions. Intact soil columns collected from field plots located in Randolph, Southern Manitoba, 2 weeks after liquid swine manure treatments (surface-applied, injected, or control with no recent manure addition) were flooded and incubated for 8 weeks at 4 ± 1°C to simulate snowmelt conditions.

Global methane emissions from rivers and streams.

Methane (CH) is a potent greenhouse gas and its concentrations have tripled in the atmosphere since the industrial revolution. There is evidence that global warming has increased CH emissions from freshwater ecosystems, providing positive feedback to the global climate. Yet for rivers and streams, the controls and the magnitude of CH emissions remain highly uncertain.

Perceptions of the health impacts of climate change among Canadians.

Background: Understanding public perceptions of the health risks of climate change is critical to inform risk communication and support the adoption of adaptive behaviours. In Canada, very few studies have explored public understandings and perceptions of climate impacts on health. The objective of this study was to address this gap by exploring perceptions of the link between climate change and health.

Nitrogen dynamics and nitrogen-to-phosphorus stoichiometry in cold region agricultural streams.

Cold agricultural regions are getting warmer and experiencing shifts in precipitation patterns, which affect hydrological transport of nutrients through reduced snowpack and higher annual proportions of summer rainfall. Previous work has demonstrated that the timing of phosphorus (P) concentrations is regionally coherent in streams of the northern Great Plains, suggesting a common climatic driver. There has been less investigation into patterns of stream nitrogen (N), despite its importance for water quality.

Landscape Controls on Nutrient Export during Snowmelt and an Extreme Rainfall Runoff Event in Northern Agricultural Watersheds.

In the northern Great Plains, most runoff transport of N, and P to surface waters has historically occurred with snowmelt. In recent years, significant rainfall runoff events have become more frequent and intense in the region. Here, we examine the influence of landscape characteristics on hydrology and nutrient export in nine tributary watersheds of the Assiniboine River in Manitoba, Canada, during snowmelt runoff and with an early summer extreme rainfall runoff event (ERRE).

Hydrological and Seasonal Controls of Phosphorus in Northern Great Plains Agricultural Streams.

Controls on nutrient transport in cold, low-relief agricultural regions vary dramatically among seasons. The spring snowmelt is often the dominant runoff and nutrient loading event of the year. However, climate change may increase the proportion of runoff occurring with rainfall, and there is an urgent need to understand seasonal controls on nutrient transport to understand how patterns may change in the future.

Nitrous Oxide and Dinitrogen: The Missing Flux in Nitrogen Budgets of Forested Catchments?

Most forest nitrogen budgets are imbalanced, with nitrogen inputs exceeding nitrogen outputs. The denitrification products nitrous oxide (NO) and dinitrogen (N) represent often-unmeasured fluxes that may close the gap between explained nitrogen inputs and outputs. Gaseous NO and N effluxes, dissolved NO flux, and traditionally measured dissolved nitrogen species (i.

High-speed limnology: using advanced sensors to investigate spatial variability in biogeochemistry and hydrology.

Advanced sensor technology is widely used in aquatic monitoring and research. Most applications focus on temporal variability, whereas spatial variability has been challenging to document. We assess the capability of water chemistry sensors embedded in a high-speed water intake system to document spatial variability.