Impact of riparian buffer zones on water quality and associated management considerations |
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Authors: | Venkatachalam Anbumozhi Jay Radhakrishnan Eiji Yamaji |
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Affiliation: | aInstitute for Global Environmental Strategies, Kansai Research Center, Kobe 651-0073, Japan;bCollege of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742-5822, USA;cGraduate School of Frontier Sciences, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan |
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Abstract: | Recent attention has focused on riparian forest buffer systems for filtering sediment, nutrients, and pesticides entering from upland agricultural fields. This paper summarizes the results of a field monitoring study done in Tokachikawa watershed in Hokkaido, Japan, Cisadane, Cianten and Citamyang sub-watersheds in Indonesia and Cauvery watershed, India to quantify the impact of riparian buffer zones on changes in stream water quality. A watershed approach was used to compare land use indicators – uplands, forests, riparian forest, livestock areas – to a wide range of surface water physical and chemical properties. Stream water physical property values increased from upstream to the confluence point, influenced by the upland and livestock land use activities. The greatest reduction in impairment of water quality was observed in buffer zones located along higher order streams where the gradient is very low, leading to slow groundwater movement. The lower stream water temperature in riparian buffer zones suggests that the shading effect is most pronounced in this area of the watershed. The results demonstrate the positive impact of forest buffer zones in reducing the influence of agricultural nutrients and chemicals on surface stream waters. Design and management considerations for establishing riparian zone land use are discussed. |
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Keywords: | Land use Non-ponit source pollution Riparian forest buffers Stream water quality Watershed |
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