Numerical analysis on water exchange and its response to the coastal engineering in the Yueqing Bay in China

On the basis of a numerical model of tidal current using Delft3D , the distribution of the semi-exchange time of water was simulated in the Yueqing Bay here. The result showed that the semi-exchange time was about more than 6 d in the bay end, and about 1~2 d in the bay mouth. Besides, based on the calculation of the semi-exchange time before and after the Xuanmen Dam project, a comparison between them was further carried out. And the same work was also done with the recent reclamation projects in the Yueqing Bay as well. The results showed that the change in semi-exchange time caused by the Xuanmen Dam project was about 6 d increase near the dam and 4.5 d increase at the bay end. And it was about 5 d increase at the bay end and 1 d increase at the mouth of the bay caused by the recent reclamation projects.

Concept and evaluation of bay health:the role of numerical model in the Yueqing Bay,China

To better evaluate the three-dimensional bay health and predict the dynamic bay health conditions, a concept of numerical bay health was introduced and a method of numerical bay health evaluation（NBHE） was developed.To support the NBHE method, a numerical bay health index（NBHI） system was constructed, which assess the natural and socio-economic effects on the entire bay. Five index groups are combined to formulate the NBHI,including geometry, hydrodynamics and sediment dynamics, bio-ecology, water quality and socio-economy.Each group has different number of indices selected and weighted using AHP method according to their importance. Data were mainly synthesized from a variety of numerical models together with monitoring programs, which provide superior to other approaches in discriminating data integrity and predicting data in future. The NBHE method using NBHI system was applied in the Yueqing Bay during spring tide in April 2007.According to the NBHE results, Sta. A, at the surface level of the estuarine mouth, has a healthy geometry condition, sub-healthy hydrodynamic and sediment dynamic condition, and unhealthy water quality and bioecology conditions. The integrated healthy score at Sta. A indicates its sub-healthy condition.

Seasonal dynamics and grazing rate of zooplankton in Yueqing Bay,China

The species composition,biomass,abundance,and species diversity of zooplankton were determined for samples collected from August 2002 to May 2003 from 14 stations in Yueqing Bay,China.Phytoplankton growth rate and microzooplankton grazing rate were obtained by using the dilution method developed by Landry and Hassett.The spatial and temporal variations of zooplankton and its relationship with environmental factors were also analyzed.The results showed that the zooplankton in the Yueqing Bay could be divided into four ecotypes,namely coastal low saline species,estuary brackish water species,offshore warm water species,and eurytopic species.A total of 75 species of zooplankton belonging to 56 genera and 17 groups of pelagic larva were identified in the Yueqing Bay.The coastal low saline species was the dominant ecotype in the study area,and the dominant species were Labidocera euchaeta,Acartia pacifica,Acrocalanus gibber,Pseudeuphausia sinica,and Sagitta bedoti among others.There was considerable seasonal variation in zooplankton biomass and abundance in the surveyed areas.The peak biomass appeared in August,descending in November and in May,and the lowest biomass appeared in February.Similarly,the highest abundance of zooplankton was observed in August,with the abundance descending in the following months:May,November,and February.There were similar horizontal distribution patterns for the biomass and the abundance of zooplankton.They both increased from the upper to the lower bay in February and May,but decreased from the upper to the lower bay in August.Biomass and abundance were evenly distributed in the Yueqing Bay in November.Moreover,there was marked seasonal variation in the species diversity of zooplankton,which conformed to the abundance of zooplankton.Results of the dilution experiments indicated that there was grazing pressure of microzooplankton on phytoplankton in the Yueqing Bay throughout the year though the rate of microzooplankton grazing on phytoplankton varied seasonally.Phytoplanktons were growing at 0.26-2.07/d and grazed by microzooplankton at a rate of 0.15-0.48/d in different seasons.