Wetlands regulation

Onshore exploration and production facilities may be subject to several aspects of the CWA national effluent limitation guidelines, stormwater regulations, wetlands regulations, and Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) requirements. 

Another important function of the pilot wetland was its demonstration of performance to regulators, setting the basis for the negotiation of achievable and permissible discharge concentrations. 

The monitoring programme reflects the still novel status of the wetland and requires substantial manpower and laboratory resources. It was agreed with the regulators (both radiation protection and water resources authorities) and includes the following sampling points and frequencies ... 

Some time is needed for the constructed wetland to operate smoothly and at the intended low cost level. In particular, the algae and floating aquamats need several years to reach full performance, so that the filter adsorbents are needed during this period. The frequent replacement of these filters adds considerably to the cost. Stand-by of the conventional treatment plant, which is required by the regulators to cope with any unexpected malfunctioning is another cost factor which makes the wetland more expensive in the early years of its operation. The cost breakdown is summarized in Table 2, which also indicates those components which can be significantly reduced over time. 

McLatchey, G. P., and K. R. Reddy. 1998. Regulation of organic matter decomposition and nutrient release in a wetland soil. Journal of Environmental Quality 27 1268-1274. 

King, G.M. (1990) Regulation by light of methane emissions from a wetland. Nature 345,513-515. 

Pure culture studies have alluded to some of the factors that may regulate enzymatic Fe(II) oxidation in complex natural environments such as sediments, soils, and the rhizosphere. Neubauer et al. (2002), used microcosms fed with environmentally relevant concentrations of O2 and Fe(II) to investigate the metabolism of an Fe(II)-oxidizing strain isolated from the wetland rhizosphere. They found that both biotic and abiotic Fe(II) oxidation increased linearly (r > 0.90) with the rate of Fe(II) addition (Figure 23). Since the experimental Fe(II) addition rate approximated in situ Fe(III)-diffusion rates in freshwater... 

Gaunt J. L., Neue H. U., Bragais J., Grant I. F., and Giller K. E. (1997) Soil characteristics that regulate soil reduction and methane production in wetland rice soils. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 61, 1526-1531. 

Vann C. D. and Megonigal J. P. (2003) Elevated CO2 and water depth regulation of methane emissions comparison of woody and non-woody wetland plant species. Biogeochemistry 63, 117-134. 

The Office of Water is responsible for the Agency s water quality activities including development of national programs, technical policies, and regulations relating to drinking water, water quality, groundwater, pollution source standards, and the protection of wetlands, marine, and estuarine areas. 

Molecular oxygen regulates both aerobic and anaerobic microbial metabolisms (Bodelier, 2003). Because of intense competition for O2, aerobic rhizosphere bacteria may be adapted to low O2 concentrations and periods of anoxia. Competition for O2 among microbial species, and between biotic and abiotic processes, has received relatively little attention (Laanbroek, 1990) but is likely to influence rhizosphere oxidation rates. Aerobic processes that occur in the wetland rhizosphere are those found in other aerobic-anaerobic interface environments and... 

Sulfide methylation reactions couple dissimilatory sulfate reduction to DMS production and determine the rates of DMS emission in freshwater wetlands. This process involves acetogenic bacteria, some of which degrade aromatic acids to acetone. In soils, freshwater, and marine ecosystems a wide diversity of other anaerobic and aerobic bacteria can contribute to sulfur gas production. In addition, diverse aerobes (e.g. methylotrophs and sulfate oxidizers) and anaerobes (e.g. methanogenes) consume S gas, thereby regulating fluxes in the atmosphere-biosphere system. 

SWPPP phase I applies to industrial facilities and to construction sites affecting more than 5 land acres, while SWPPP phase II regulations affect those construction sites affecting between 1 and 5 acres. SWPPPs are expected to provide plans for minimization of soil erosion, protect vegetation and wetlands, and define runoff source points to standing water. 

Many biogeochemical reactions in the natural systems involve oxidation-reduction. The biogeochemi-cal cycles of C, N, O, S, P, and trace metals are regulated by oxidation-reduction reaction. Thus, we have dedicated Chapter 4 primarily to discuss oxidation-reduction reactions in wetlands. In this chapter we will primarily introduce the terminology. For details, the reader should refer to Chapter 4. 

Floodwater pH in wetlands is usually regulated by the photosynthetic activity of periphyton communities and submerged macrophytes. Depending on the alkalinity of water, the pH values can increase to about 9 during the day and decrease to near neutral levels during the night. These diel changes are directly linked to the absence or presence of carbon dioxide. The possible sources of carbon dioxide in floodwater are as follows ... 

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