Dissertation Research:The Fate of Nitrate in Stormwater Retention Basins in an Arid Metropolitan Area

蓄水池是一种常见的方法来管理多余的水从暴雨。在有蓄水池的社区，来自给定区域的所有径流都被引导到一个凹进的区域，在那里水可以渗透到土壤中或蒸发。许多研究表明，雨水通常含有高浓度的营养物质和其他污染物，但很少有研究，特别是在干旱环境中，调查这些添加物对土壤微生物过程的影响。在该项目中，将在两种蓄水池中模拟风暴，这些蓄水池将被含有稀有氮同位素的水淹没。同位素的使用使得能够跟踪氮，因为它被微生物转化为各种化合物，其中一些是比其他更严重的污染物。雨水滞留流域是一个自然的管理和规划单位，因此这项研究有更广泛的影响，超越了城市系统的生态理论。这项工作的见解将为社会带来直接利益：规划者，工程师和管理人员将更好地了解流域设计如何影响土壤改善水质和减少潜在温室气体排放的能力。充分了解城市的生态过程和城市内部的生态过程对于城市生态和社会经济系统的未来可持续性是必要的。

Retention basins are a common approach to managing excess water from rain storms. In neighborhoods with retention basins, all of the runoff from a given area is directed into a recessed area where the water can then infiltrate into the soil or evaporate. Many studies have shown that stormwater often has high concentrations of nutrients and other pollutants, but few studies, especially in arid environments, have investigated the impacts of these additions on soil microbial processes. For this project, a storm will be simulated in two kinds of retention basins, which will be flooded with water containing a rare isotope of nitrogen. The use of the isotope enables tracking the nitrogen as it is transformed by microorganisms into various compounds, some of which are more serious pollutants than others. Stormwater retention basins are a natural unit for management and planning, thus this research has a broader impact beyond contributing to ecological theory of urban systems. Insights from this work will create a direct benefit to society: planners, engineers, and managers will better understand how basin design influences the ability of the soils to improve water quality and reduce potential greenhouse gas emissions. Sufficient knowledge of ecological processes of and within cities is necessary for the future sustainability of urban ecological and socioeconomic systems.