Modelling nitrogen and phosphorus cycles and dissolved oxygen in the Zhujiang Estuary Ⅰ.Model results

In the present study, the ecosystem-based water quality model was applied to the Pearl River (Zhujiang) Estuary. The model results successfully represent the distribution trend of nutrients and dissolved oxygen both in the horizontal and vertical planes during the flood season, and it shows that the model has taken into consideration the key part of the dynamical, chemical and biological processes existing in the Zhujiang Estuary. The further studies illustrate that nitrogen is in plenty while phospho- rus and light limit the phytoplankton biomass in the Zhujiang Estuary during the flood season.

Study of radioactive status in the Zhujiang Estuary and adjacent sea area in South China Sea (SCS)

Through the investigation on radioactive activities of water, sediment and some marine organismsin the Zhujiang Estuary, adjacent sea area and the distributary mouths of the Zhujiang River, activities of total α. radioactivity, total β radioactivity, artificial radioactive 90Srand 157Cs, and factors inflencing the distribution and the content of U in seawater are studied.The mainly radioactive pollution substances and their sources in the sea area are studied by γ spectra obtained from sediment in the sea area. The results show that the main radioactivity substances are natural radioactivity U,Th series and 40K. which were produced by the modern industry and transported into the sea through the main current of the Zhujiang River.

Study on fish community structure in the Zhujiang Estuaryand its adjacent waters

Based on data of demersal trawl Samples from 1987 to 1988 in the Zhujiang Estuary and its adjacent waters, relationships between fish community and environmental factors are studied by using clssification , MDS ordina-tion and several community parameters. The results shaw that the distribution of fish shoes is zoned by salinty anddivided into three types. The freshwater community which is restricted in the Lianhua Hill - Humen waterway is sim-ple and stable, the coastal community which lives in the shallow waters is complex, and the estuary community whichis idenhfied in the Lingdingyang area and affected by Physical and ecological pinemore greatly greatly has obvious seasonalvariations.

Environmental monitoring of the Zhujiang Estuary and its coastal waters

The Zhujiang (Pearl River) Estuary is a complex water system whose catchments basincovers a very large part of southern China. The large quantity of fresh water carried by the river system flows into the northern coast of the South China Sea through its eight inlets. The Zhujiang River Delta has experienced the fastest economic growth in China during the past two decades. Rapid population expansion and increased industrial development coupled with insufficient waste management turned the Zhujiang Estuary into waste disposal channels just before entering the coastal waters. The water quality of the estuaries and the coastal oceans has become polluted. During the past two years, an intensive study and monitoring efforts of the pollutions of these waters have been made. A systematic and integrated monitoring task including shore-based measurements, shipboard in-situ measurements, and satellite and radar remote sensing surveys has been completed. Comprehensive collection of physical, chemical and biological parameters has been accomplished and a database has been established. Unlike the previous large scale-monitoring task in which the various pollutant concentrations were the objective, the present study aims to understand the process of the pollution from their initial disposal to their final states. The understanding of the processes makes it possible to evaluate the severity of the pollution with respect to the sustainability. Also the objective is to incorporate these processes into the mathematical models from which a predictive capability of the pollution situation can be realized. The present presentation will describe the planning, methodology and the results of this effort.

Nutrient profiles in interstitial water and flux in water-sediment interface of the Zhujiang Estuary of China in summer

The profiles of nutrient salts in the interstitial water of sediment were analyzed in the Zhu- jiang Estuary in the summer of 1999, and based on the profiles of content and characteristic of nutri- ents, the relationship between nutrients in the interstitial water and organic matter decomposition in sediment was discussed. The results showed that ammonium with high content was the main existence form of nutrients in the interstital water of sediment, and the organic matter decomposition was com- pleted in anaerobic condition. The increase of ammonium content in the bottom water resulted from the decomposition of organic matter and release of metabolic production, and the ammonium bottom flux was an important resource for nutrients geochemistry in the Zhujiang Estuary.

Penaeoid shrimp fisheries resources in the Zhujiang Estuary

INTRODUCTIONThe Zhujiang (Pearl River) Estuary (22°00′-22°45′N, 113°30′-114°00′E), created by the inflow of fresh water from various tributaries of the Zhujiang, is the largest estuarine system in the southern China with an area of about 2 300 km2 . Average depth of the water body is about

Tetrabromobisphenol A and hexabromocyclododecane in sediments from the Zhujiang(Pearl) River Estuary and South China Sea

Marine sediments collected from the Zhujiang(Pearl) River Estuary(ZRE) and South China Sea(SCS) were utilized to study the occurrence and spatial distribution of tetrabromobisphenol A(TBBPA) and hexabromocyclododecane(HBCDD).The levels of TBBPA and HBCDD in sediments ranged from not detected(nd) to 6.14 ng/g dry weight(dw) and nd to 0.42 ng/g dw.TBBPA concentrations in marine sediments were substantially higher than HBCDD.The concentrations of TBBPA and HBCDD in the ZRE sediments were significantly greater than those in the SCS.α-HBCDD(48.7%) and γ-HBCDD(46.2%) were the two main diastereoisomers of HBCDD in sediments from the ZRE,with minor contribution of β-HBCDD(5.1%).HBCDD were only found in one sample from the northern SCS.The enantiomeric fraction of α-HBCDD in sediments from the ZRE was obviously greater than 0.5,indicating an accumulation of(+)-α-HBCDD.The enantiomers of HBCDD were not measured in sediments from the SCS.This work highlighted the environmental behaviors of TBBPA and HBCDD in marine sediments.

Responses of estuarine salinity and transport processes to sea level rise in the Zhujiang(Pearl River) Estuary

Understanding the changes of hydrodynamics in estuaries with respect to magnitude of sea level rise is important to understand the changes of transport process. Based on prediction of sea level rise over the 21st century, the Zhujiang（Pearl River） Estuary was chosen as a prototype to study the responses of the estuary to potential sea level rise. The numerical model results show that the average salt content, saltwater intrusion distance, and stratification will increase as the sea level rises. The changes of these parameters have obvious seasonal variations. The salt content in the Lingdingyang shows more increase in April and October（the transition periods）. The saltwater intrusion distance has larger increase during the low-flow periods than during the highflow periods in the Lingdingyang. The result is just the opposite in Modaomen. The stratification and its increase are larger during the low-flow periods than during the high-flow periods in Lingdingyang. The response results of transport processes to sea level rise demonstrate that：（1） The time of vertical transport has pronounced increase.The increased tidal range and currents would reinforce the vertical mixing, but the increased stratification would weaken the vertical exchange. The impact of stratification changes overwhelms the impact of tidal changes. It would be more difficult for the surface water to reach the bottom.（2） The lengthways estuarine circulation would be strengthened. Both the offshore surface residual current and inshore bottom residual current will be enhanced.The whole meridional resident flow along the transect of the Lingdingyang would be weakened. These phenomena are caused by the decrease of water surface slope（WWS） and the change of static pressure with the increase of water depth under sea level rise.

Tidal energy budget in the Zhujiang(Pearl River) Estuary

Tidal energy budget in the Zhujiang（Pearl River） Estuary（ZE） is evaluated by employing high-resolution baroclinic regional ocean modeling system（ROMS）. The results obtained via applying the least square method on the model elevations are compared against the tidal harmonic constants at 18 tide stations along the ZE and its adjacent coast. The mean absolute errors between the simulation and the observation of M_2, S_2, K_1 and O_1 are 4.6, 2.8, 3.2 and 2.8 cm in amplitudes and 9.8°, 15.0°, 4.6° and 4.6° in phase-lags, respectively. The comparisons between the simulated and observed sea level heights at 11 tide gauge stations also suggest good model performance. The total tidal energy flux incoming the ZE is estimated to be 343.49 MW in the dry season and larger than 336.18 MW in the wet season, which should due to higher mean sea level height and heavier density in the dry season. M_2, K_1, S_2, O_1 and N_2, the top five barotropic tidal energy flux contributors for the ZE,import 242.23（236.79）, 52.97（52.08）, 24.49（23.96）, 16.22（15.91） and 7.10（6.97） MW energy flux into the ZE in dry（wet） season, successively and respectively. The enhanced turbulent mixing induced by eddies around isolated islands and sharp headlands dominated by bottom friction, interaction between tidal currents and sill topography or constricted narrow waterways together account for the five energy dissipation hotspots, which add up to about 38% of the total energy dissipation inside the ZE.

Dynamics of Coastal Land Use Patterns of Inner Lingdingyang Bay in the Zhujiang River Estuary

To satisfy the growing of land demand from economic development,a large scale of land reclamation from sea has been carried out in Inner Lingdingyang Bay in the Zhujiang(Pearl)River estuary in recent years.As a result,the tidal flat and the water channels became narrow,the frequency of floods increased,and the environment was un-dermined.Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey(GMGS)conducted an integrated project for marine geo-environ-ment and geo-hazards survey in 2003.With the integration of multi-temporal remote sensing images of 1977,1978,1988,1996,and 2003,GIS spatial analyzing approach and GPS technique,as well as field data and other background data of the region,this research investigated the comprehensive characteristics and the drivers of coastal land use dy-namics and shoreline changes in Inner Lingdingyang Bay.The results reveal that the reclaimed coastal land was mainly for agriculture and aquaculture in early years,but now they are used for construction sites of harbors and in-dustries,especially high-tech industry.

Nitrous oxide concentration and nitrification and denitrification in Zhujiang River Estuary,China

The concentrations of nitrous oxide varies between 57 and 329 nmol/dm3, saturation is 674%～4 134% in the Zhujiang River Estuary. This suggests that the area is an emissive source of nitrous oxide. The acetylene inhibition technique is employed to evaluate the rates of nitrification, denitrification and nitrate reduction by bacterial activities in the sediments at three sites. The average of nitrification, denitrification and nitrate reduction rates ranges from 0.32 to 2.43, 0.03 to 0.84 and 4.17 to 13.06 mmol/(m2·h), respectively. The ver- tical profiles of the sediments show that the nitrification and denitrification processes mainly take place in the depth from 0 to 4 cm and depend on regional conditions. The rates of nitrification, denitrification and nitrate reduction are dominated by Eh, nitrate and ammoni- um concentrations in sediments and DO in overlay water. There is a coupling between nitrification and denitrification.

A model study of influence of circulation on the pollutant transport in the Zhujiang River Estuary and adjacent coastal waters

A tracer model with random diffusion coupled to the hydrodynamic model for the Zhujiang River Estuary (Pearl River Estuary, PRE) is to examine the effect of circulations on the transport of completely conservative pollutants. It is focused on answering the following questions: (1) What role does the estuarine plume front in the winter play in affecting the pollutants transport and its distribution in the PRE ? (2) What effect do the coastal currents driven by the monsoon have on the pollutants transport? The tracer experiment results show that: (1) the pollutant transport paths strongly depend on the circulation structures and plume frontal dynamics of the PRE and coastal waters; (2) during the summer when a southwesterly monsoon prevails, the pollutants from the four easterly river inlets and those from the bottom layer of offshore stations will greatly influence the water quality in Hong Kong waters, however, the pollutants released from the four westerly river-inlets will seldom affect the water qual

Variation of reactivity of particulate and sedimentary organic matter along the Zhujiang River Estuary

To investigate organic matter source and reactivity in the Zhujiang River (Pearl River) Estuary and its adjacent areas, particulate organic carbon (POC), particulate hydrolysable amino acids (PHAA), and Chl a during two cruises in July 1999 and July 2000 were measured. The highest POC and PHAA concentration was observed in the waters with maximum Chl a. The spectra distribution, relative content (dry weight in milligram per gram), PHAA-C% POC and other indicators such as the ratios of amino acids vs. amino sugars (AA/AS) and glucosamine vs. galactosamine (Glum/Gal) suggested that particulate amino acids in the water column and sediments in the Zhujiang River Estuary were mainly derived from biogenic processes rather than transported from terrestrial erosion. In inner estuary where high turbidity was often observable, organic matter was mainly contributed by re-suspension of bottom sediments with revealed zooplankton, microbial reworked characteristics, which suggest that these organic matters were relatively 'old'. In the estuarine brackish region, organic matter in water column is mainly contributed by relatively fresh, easily degradable phytoplankton derived organic matter. During physical - biological processes within the eastuary, organic matter derived from phytoplankton was subjected to alteration by zooplankton grazing and bacterial reworking.

Chemometric study of spatial variations of environmental and ecological characteristics in the Zhujiang River (Pearl River) Estuary and adjacent waters

Chemometric approach based on principal component analysis（PCA） was utilized to examine the spatial variances of environmental and ecological characteristics in the Zhujiang River（Pearl River） Estuary and adjacent waters（ZREAW） in the South China Sea. The PCA result shows that the ZREAW can be divided into different zones according to the principal components and geographical locations of the study stations,and indicates that there are distinct regional variances on environmental features and the corresponding phytoplankton biomass and community structures among different areas. The spatial distribution of ecological features was implied to be influenced by various degrees of the different water resources,such as the Pearl River discharges,the coastal current and the oceanic water from the South China Sea. The variation of the biomass maximum zone and the complex impacts on the spatial distributions of phytoplankton biomass and production were also evaluated.

Effect of river plume on phytoplankton community structure in Zhujiang River estuary

To examine the phytoplankton assemblages and the effect of diluted waters on them,a research cruise was conducted from July 19 to August 7,2015 in the Zhujiang(Pearl)River estuary in the northern South China Sea(21°N–23.5°N,111°E–117°E).Samples were collected from 65 stations including one for time-series sampling.A total of 212 phytoplankton taxa were identified from 61 genera belonging to 4 phyla.Among them,122 species identified from 42 genera of Bacillariophyta and 83 species from 15 genera of Pyrrophyta.Chain-forming diatoms dominated the phytoplankton community where Pseudonitzschia delicatissima,Guinardia striata,Thalassionema nitzschioides,and P.pungens comprised about 52%of the total abundance.However,higher cell abundances concentrated on both sides of the estuary,because of low salinity and high nutrients brought by diluted water.In addition,Canonical Correspondence Analysis revealed that salinity and dissolved inorganic nitrogen shaped the species composition in the study area.Furthermore,the Jaccard similarity index showed prevailing high similarity in the distribution of species in low-salinity diluted waters,and the Bray-Curtis similarity depicted distinguished grouping for phytoplankton assemblages along the salinity gradient.However,phytoplankton diel vertical cycles showed maximum abundance occurred at 2:00 am,which was mainly contributed by benthic phytoplankton species Pseudo-nitzschia spp.and T.nitzschioides.

Estimation of total suspended matter in the Zhujiang (Pearl) River estuary from Hyperion imagery

Although remote sensing data have been used to estimate total suspended matter （TSM） in coastal waters, it has limitations when applied to estuary waters in low spatial resolution situations. The spatial resolution of ocean color satellites such as SeaWiFS and MODIS is usually -1 km, and therefore is not adequate for small, local-scale areas such as the Zhujiang （Pearl） River estuary. In contrast, 30 m-resolution EO-1 Hyperion imagery has potential for studying TSM in localized areas. We measured the surface spectral radiance reflectance of the river estuary water in the visible and near infra-red spectral range. Sensitivity analysis indicated that the ratio of remote sensing reflectance at 813 nm （Rrs（813）） to reflectance at 559 nm （Rrs（559）） could be used to estimate TSM concentration, and a linear relationship was established between the ratio and in-situ TSM concentration. We applied the linear relationship to Hyperion imagery to map TSM concentration in the estuary. The Hyperion imagery provided sufficient spatial resolution to detect spatiotemporal changes in TSM concentrations in the estuary small estuary area. This study demonstrated the usefulness of Hyperion imagery for mapping the distribution of TSM in estuary waters. Keyword： Hyperion; total suspended matter （TSM）; Zhujiang （Pearl） River estuary

Modeling transportation of suspended solids in Zhujiang River estuary, South China

A three-dimensional transportation model for suspended solids (SS) in Zhujiang (Pearl) River estuary, South China, was developed by coupling with a three-dimensional hydrodynamic model. The model was validated using hourly measured data of sediment contents during 25–26, July 1999. The results showed that modeled contents matched well with measured ones and that the modeled top layer distribution agreed with the remotely sensed image of suspended solids in summer. The modeled results showed clearly the layers of sus- pended solids in depth, with larger sediment contents in lower layers though in the interface between salt water and freshwater the lowest contents appeared in middle layer. In overall, the suspended solids inflow from 8 rivers, transport southwestward, and carried by strong coastal flow in Zhujiang River estuary. Contours of sediment contents in the estuary spread further to the open sea during ebb tide rather than flood tide which reflects that the suspended solids in the estuary are land sourced.

A dinoflagellate Cochlodinium geminatum bloom in the Zhujiang (Pearl) River estuary in autumn 2009

A severe Cochlodinium geminatum red tide (>300 km2) was observed in the Zhujiang (Pearl) River estuary, South China Sea in autumn 2009. We evaluated the environmental conditions and phytoplankton community structure during the outbreak. The red tide water mass had significantly higher dissolved inorganic phosphate (DIP), ammonia, and temperature, but significantly lower nitrite, nitrate, dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN), and DIN/DIP relative to the non-red-tide zones. The phytoplankton assemblage was dominated by dinoflagellates and diatoms during the red tide. C. geminatum was the most abundant species, with a peak density of 4.13×107 cell/L, accounting for >65% of the total phytoplankton density. The DIN/DIP ratio was the most important predictor of species, accounting for 12.45% of the total variation in the phytoplankton community. Heavy phosphorus loading, low precipitation, and severe saline intrusion were likely responsible for the bloom of C. geminatum.

Turbidity maximum formation and its seasonal variations in the Zhujiang(Pearl River)Estuary,southern China

Real-time observations in the field and numerical simulations（with Delft3D） were combined to study the formation, distribution and the relevant influencing factors of turbidity maximum（TM） in the Zhujiang（Pearl River） Estuary（ZE）. The spatial distribution pattern of the TM varies with the longitudinal distributions of salinity and suspended sediment concentration（SSC）. The SSC is enhanced and the TM is intensified during dry seasons,whereas the center of the TM moves upstream by a distance of 10 km during wet seasons. The formation of the TM is influenced by a complex combination of numerous factors, including tides, river discharges and topography, wherein sediment resuspension and vertical circulation dominate the formations and variability of the TM.

Radium isotopes assess water mixing processes and its application in the Zhujiang River estuary

Radium （Ra） isotopes are useful for tracing water mass transport and examining estuarine hydrological dynamics. In this study, several hydrological parameters, nutrients, ehlorophyll-a （ehl-a）, suspended particulate matter （SPM） and Ra isotopes （223Ra, 224Ra and 226Ra） of surface waters of the Zhujiang （Pearl） River estuary （ZRE） were measured. This was done for both winter （December） and summer （July） seasons, to quantitatively understand the seasonal characteristics of river plume flow rate and trajectories, as well as the ecological response. The results show that Ra concentrations in summer were higher than in winter, especially Z24Ra （about 2-5 times higher）. The spatial distribution of three Ra isotopes and relative Ra water ages indicated that river water mainly flushed out of ZRE through the western side in winter, where the water transport was about 5 days faster than in the eastern zone. In summer, diluted river water expended to the east side, resulting in fairly similar water ages for both sides of the river mouth. Although nutrients were higher during the summer season, lower chl-a concentrations indicated that reduced primary production might be caused by high SPM （low light penetration）. The results obtained from this study will provide knowledge needed for effectively developing and managing the ZRE.