An In-Situ Geotextile Filtration Method for Suspended Solids Attenuation and Algae Suppression in a Canadian Eutrophic Lake

Abstract

Climate change and human actions will exacerbate eutrophication cases in inland waters. By external or internal inputs, there will be an increase in nutrient concentrations in those systems worldwide. Those nutrients will bring faster trophic changes to inland waters and possible health and recreational advisories. A novel approach using a floating filtration system, a silt curtain, and geotextiles (woven and non-woven) is under investigation. This method has been applied as an in-situ pilot experiment deployed at Lake Caron, a shallow eutrophic lake in Quebec, for two summers. Turbidity, total suspended solids (TSS), total phosphorus (TP), blue-green-algae-phycocyanin (BGA-PC) and chlorophyll-a showed statistically significant average removal efficiencies of 53%, 22%, 49%, 57% and 56%, respectively, in the first year and 17%, 36%, 18%, 34% and 32% in the second. Statistical correlations were found with TSS, turbidity and variables that could represent particles (TP, turbidity, chlorophyll-a). Employing this in situ management method could be a promising remediation for not only shallow lakes (average depth <2 m) but also for ponds, rivers, coastal regions, bays and other water types, to enable cleaner water for future generations.

Lanthanum Materials Enable Catalytic Hydrolysis of Phosphate Esters: Implications for Water Treatment and Eutrophication Control

“…The organophosphate esters in nature waters, when treated by La materials, may undergo significant transformation to reactive P and create P sinks in high La areas. 42,57 ■ ASSOCIATED CONTENT…”

Practices for Eutrophic Shallow Lake Water Remediation and Restoration: A Critical Literature Review

“…While the floating wetland (i.e., ecological floating beds) uses floating plant units, which can uptake nutrients from the water column and thus decrease the incidence of harmful algae blooms, the lake water filtration technique is based on using custom-made geotextiles, generally used in layers for strata separation, soil improvement, reinforcement, and drainage as filter layers for attenuating suspended solids and thus particulate phosphorus. A significant improvement in lake water has been found in investigations performed with geotextiles onsite and in situ [106][107][108]. However, additional investigations are still required for both methods for any further scale-up and whole lake applications.…”

Sustainable lake restoration: From challenges to solutions

“…System analysis also includes determining the cost efficiency of potentially applicable measures and listing their success and failure rate to achieve maximum benefits at the lowest costs (including energy requirements) for each option under consideration. Decision trees were developed in some studies to ensure science‐based choices among alternatives (e.g., Mehner et al, 2004; Pereira & Mulligan, 2023; Schauser et al, 2003; Waajen, 2017).…”