Wetland management maintains nitrogen (N) removal capacity in mature and overgrown constructed wetlands (CWs). We evaluated whether CW management by macrophyte harvesting, and subsequent installation of woodchips-based floating beds (WFBs) planted with Glyceria maxima and Filipendula ulmaria improved N removal. In sixteen heavily overgrown experimental CWs, we applied four treatments: i) only macrophyte harvesting, ii) 5% of the harvested-CW surface covered with WFBs, iii) 20% WFBs cover, and iv) a control treatment (heavily overgrown). N removal was determined in all wetlands at nine occasions. Plant biomass accrual, N assimilation, and denitrification genes nirS, nirK, nosZI and nosZII on plant roots and woodchips from WFBs were estimated. Macrophyte harvesting improved N removal of heavily overgrown CWs, whereas subsequent WFB installation only sometimes improved N removal. Mean N removal efficiencies (± standard deviation) overall were 41 ± 15 %, 45 ± 20 %, 46 ± 16 % and 27 ± 8.3 % for treatments i to iv, respectively. Relative biomass production, root length and root surface area for G. maxima (mean ± standard deviation: 234 ± 114 %, 40 ± 6.5 cm, 6308 ± 1059 cm2g-1, respectively) were higher than those for F. ulmaria (63 ± 86 %, 28 ± 12 cm, 3131 ± 535 cm2g-1, respectively) whereas biomass N assimilation was higher for F. ulmaria (1.8 ± 0.9 gNm−2 of WFB) than for G. maxima (1.3 ± 0.5 gNm−2 of WFB). Denitrification gene abundance was higher on plant roots than on woodchips while G. maxima hosted higher root denitrification gene abundance than F. ulmaria. We conclude that macrophyte harvesting improves N removal in heavily overgrown CWs. WFBs installation has the potential to support plant growth and denitrification in surface-flow constructed wetlands. Further studies need to evaluate the long-term effects of macrophyte harvesting and WFB installation on N removal in CWs. © 2024 The Authors

Efforts to mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are receiving increased attention among governmental and commercial actors. In recent years, the interest in paludiculture, i.e. the use of rewetted peatlands, has grown because of its potential to reduce GHG emissions by stopping soil decomposition. Moreover, cultivating wetland plants on rewetted peatlands for  bioenergy production that replaces fossil fuels in the transport sector, can contribute to additional GHG emission reductions. In this study, an analysis of literature data was conducted to obtain data on GHG emissions (CO2 and CH4) and biomass production from rewetted peatlands cultivated with two different wetland plant species: Phragmites australis (Pa) and Typha latifolia (Tl). In  addition, a  biogas experiment was carried out to investigate the biomethane yield of Pa and Tl biomass, and the reduction of global warming potential (GWP) by using biomethane as vehicle fuel. The results show that peatland rewetting can be an important measure to mitigate the GWP as it reduces GHG emissions from the soil, particularly on a 100-year timescale but also to some extent on a 20-year timescale. More specifically, rewetting of 1 km2 of peatland can result in  a  GWP reduction corresponding to  the  emissions from ±2600 average sized petrol cars annually. Growing Pa on rewetted peatlands reduces soil GHG emissions more than growing Tl, but Pa and Tl produced similar amounts of biomass and biomethane per land area. Our study concludes that Pa, because of a more pronounced GWP reduction, is the most suitable wetland plant to cultivate after peatland rewetting. © 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Phragmites australis, Typha latifolia, T. angustifolia and Arundo donax are tall wetland graminoids with the potential to replace fossil fuels under sustainable cultivation conditions. We investigated the biomethane (CH₄) production of these four species, including four different genotypes of P. australis, which represent the high intraspecific diversity of European reed. All plants were grown under three different macronutrient supplies (no nutrients added, an equivalent of 75 kg N ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ added and an equivalent of 500 kg N ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ added). Biomethane production was measured in four independent batch digestion tests. Across all experiments, fertilization regime had little effect on CH₄ yield, which was on average 222 ± 31 L kg⁻¹ volatile solids (VS). The lowest yield was produced by T. angustifolia (140 L kg_VS⁻¹) receiving no nutrients, while the highest yield was produced by A. donax (305 L kg_VS⁻¹) in the highest nutrient treatment. The intraspecific diversity of P. australis did not affect biomethane production. All P. australis genotypes produced on average 226 ± 19 L CH₄ kg_VS⁻¹, which, although high, was still lower than conventional biogas species. The biomass production of P. australis was less increased by fertilization than that of Typha sp. and A. donax, but all species had similar biomass without fertilization.

Restored and constructed semi-natural wetlands are increasingly used in the agricultural landscape to intercept nutrients from surface waters. Vegetated surface-flow wetlands remove more nitrogen (N) than those without vegetation. However, changes in N removal over time as differently vegetated wetlands progress from early successional stages to mature systems are less investigated. We monitored three different types of initial planting over the course of 12 years, with the aim to examine how planting of newly constructed wetlands affects long-term N removal. All our data were collected in an experimental wetland facility in south-western Sweden. The facility consists of 18 identical small (ca. 25 m²) surface-flow wetlands, simulating semi-natural wetlands in an agricultural landscape. Initially, the 18 wetlands were randomly divided into three treatments (vegetation types) with six replicates each and planted with (1) emergent vegetation, (2) submerged vegetation and (3) no vegetation for free development. Vegetation succession afterwards progressed uninhibited in all wetlands. Emergent vegetation wetlands initially removed more N than both submerged vegetation and free development wetlands. We found that N removal in submerged vegetation and free development wetlands increased with ecosystem age, whereas N removal in emergent vegetation wetlands did not. N removal in all three vegetation types converged when the wetlands reached a more mature state, around 8 years after wetland construction. However, although all wetlands contained emergent vegetation in year 8, the proportion of emergent vegetation cover and vegetation composition still differed substantially between wetland types. Our study indicates that it is not the cover of emergent vegetation per se which promotes higher N removal in more mature wetlands, but the maturation process itself; mature wetlands despite differing emergent vegetation coverage achieved equally high N removal. In conclusion, once wetlands reach maturity, beneficial effects of initial planting on N removal disappear. © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Excess nitrogen (N) from agricultural runoff is a cause of pollution inaquatic ecosystems. Created free water surface (FWS) wetlands can be used as buffering systems to lower the impacts of nutrients from agricultural runoff. The purpose of this paper was to evaluate critical factors for N removal in FWSwetlands receiving high nitrate (NO₃⁻) loads from agriculture. The study was performed in 12 experimental FWS wetlands in southern Sweden, receiving drainage water from an agricultural field area. The effects of water depth (mean depth of 0.4 m and 0.6 m, respectively) and phosphorus (P) availability (with or without additional P load) were investigated from July to October. The experiment was performed in a two-way design, with three wetlands of each combination of depth and P availability. The effects of P availability on the removal of NO₃⁻ and total N were strongly significant, with higher absolute N removal rates per wetland area (g m⁻² day⁻¹) as well as temperature-adjusted first-order area-based removal rate coefficients (K_at) in wetlands with external P addition compared to wetlands with no addition. Further, higher N removal in deep compared to shallow wetlands was indicated by statistically significant differences in K_at. The results show that low P availability may limit N removal in wetlands receiving agricultural drainage water. Furthermore, the results support that not only wetland area but also wetland volume may be important for N removal. The results have implications for the planning, location, and design of created wetlands in agricultural areas. © 2019 by the authors

Initial planting of created wetlands is common practice in order to, for instance, improve nitrogen (N) removal. It has been shown that vegetated surface-flow wetlands remove more N than non-vegetated surface-flow wetlands. However, changes in N removal as differently vegetated wetlands progress from an early successional stage to a mature system are less investigated.

In our study, we followed three different wetland types of initial planting over the course of 12 years, with the aim to examine how planting of newly created wetlands affects long-term N removal. All our data were collected in the experimental wetland facility near Halmstad in south-western Sweden. The facility consist of 18 small (ca. 25 m²) surface-flow wetlands, equal in age, shape and size. At the time of creation, the 18 wetlands were randomly divided into three types. One type was then planted with emergent vegetation, one was planted with submerged vegetation and the last type was left unplanted for free development. Succession of vegetation was thereafter allowed to progress uninhibited in all wetlands.

Our results confirmed that emergent vegetation wetlands initially removed more N than submerged vegetation and free development wetlands. In addition, our results showed that N removal in submerged vegetation and free development wetlands increased with ecosystem age, whereas N removal in emergent vegetation wetlands did not. N removal in all three wetland vegetation types converged when the wetlands reached a more mature state, around year 9 after wetland creation. However, although all wetlands contained emergent vegetation in year 9, proportion cover of emergent vegetation and vegetation composition still differed substantially between wetland types.

We therefore conclude planting of created surface-flow wetlands with emergent vegetation will have a positive effect on N removal, but only during an early successional stage. Our study indicates it is not the emergent vegetation per se which results in higher N removal in more mature wetlands, but the maturation process in itself, since mature wetlands with different emergent vegetation cover achieved similar N removal. Initial planting will not result in higher N removal once the system has reached maturity.

Introduction: Currently, wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) do not efficiently remove pharmaceutical substances (PS). Thus, such substances are now frequently found in aquatic ecosystems worldwide. Also, concentrations of some PS in treated effluents exceed Environmental Quality Standards proposed by EU legislation. One resource-efficient option for increasing PS removal in WWTP effluents is to use constructed wetlands (CWs) as an attenuation step (Breitholtz et al. 2012; Li et al. 2014). However, very little research has been done on how to maximize the PS attenuation capacity of CWs. Therefore, a project with the aim to investigate reduction of different pharmaceutical substances in CWs with different vegetation compositions and water depths, was performed at the Experimental Wetland Area (EVA) located 20 km north of Halmstad, Sweden. 

Data from seven constructed wetlands (CWs) in the south of Sweden were analyzed to investigate the effects of water flow and season on inflow phosphorus (P) concentrations and temporal P retention variations in CWs receiving runoff from arable land. The form of P (dissolved or particulate) during different water flows (high and low) and seasons (warm and cold) was investigated using the results of total P (TP) and phosphate analyzed in grab samples that had been collected regularly or occasionally during two to nine years, along with continuous water flow measurements.

The form of inflow and outflow P (particulate or dissolved P) differed between CWs, and also varied with season and flow. For instance, in three of the CWs, particulate P (PP) dominated the inflow during the cold period with high flow, while during the other periods the proportion of PP was approximately 50%. In one CW situated in a catchment with high clay content, PP dominated both inflow and outflow at all times. The average clay content in catchment top soils was positively correlated to the flow-weighted inflow TP concentrations.

In three CWs receiving runoff through drainage pipes, the relationship between TP concentrations (TP_in) and water flow was positive, both during high and low flow, and during warm and cold period. However, in four CWs that received surface water runoff, the relationship between TP_in and water flow was positive during high flow periods (i.e. the 25% sampling occasions with the highest flow), and during low flow and warm period, the relationship was negative in these four wetlands, indicating either anoxic stagnant water upstream or influence from rural wastewater.

The temporal dynamics of P concentrations mean that in some of the CWs, the main part of the annual P retention may occur during a few days with high water flows. The correlation between concentration and water flow suggests that the water sampling strategy may have a considerable impact on retention estimates, as exemplified by some calculation examples. © 2015 Elsevier B.V.

During 2007–2013, the Swedish Board of Agriculture granted support within a national program to about 1000 wetlands, corresponding to a 5300-hectare wetland area, with the dual goal to remove nutrients from water and to improve biodiversity in agricultural landscapes. The aim of the present study was to compare the effects on nutrient transports that are realized within the national program to what could be obtained with the same area of wetlands if location and design of wetlands were optimized. In single, highly nutrient-loaded wetlands, a removal of around 1000 kg nitrogen and 100 kg phosphorus per hectare wetland area and year was estimated from monitoring data. Statistical models were developed to estimate the overall nutrient removal effects of wetlands created within the national program. Depending on model, the effect of the national program as a whole was estimated to between 27 and 38 kg nitrogen and between 2.7 and 4.5 kg phosphorus per hectare created wetland area and year. Comparison of what is achieved in individual wetlands to what was achieved in the national program indicates that nutrient removal effects could be increased substantially in future wetland programs by emphasising location and design of wetlands.

Recently, there have been growing concerns about pharmaceuticals including antibiotics as environmental contaminants. Antibiotics of concentrations commonly encountered in wastewater have been suggested to affect bacterial population dynamics and to promote dissemination of antibiotic resistance. Conventional wastewater treatment processes do not always adequately remove pharmaceuticals causing environmental dissemination of low levels of these compounds. Using constructed wetlands as an additional treatment step after sewage treatment plants have been proposed as a cheap alternative to increase reduction of wastewater contaminants, however this means that the natural microbial community of the wetlands becomes exposed to elevated levels of antibiotics. In this study, experimental surface-flow wetlands in Sweden were continuously exposed to antibiotics of concentrations commonly encountered in wastewater. The aim was to assess the antibiotic removal efficiency of constructed wetlands and to evaluate the impact of low levels of antibiotics on bacterial diversity, resistance development and expression in the wetland bacterial community. Antibiotic concentrations were measured using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and the effect on the bacterial diversity was assessed with 16S rRNA-based denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis. Real-time PCR was used to detect and quantify antibiotic resistance genes and integrons in the wetlands, during and after the exposure period. The results indicated that the antibiotic removal efficiency of constructed wetlands was comparable to conventional wastewater treatment schemes. Furthermore, short-term treatment of the constructed wetlands with environmentally relevant concentrations (i.e. 100-2000 ng x 1(-1)) of antibiotics did not significantly affect resistance gene concentrations, suggesting that surface-flow constructed wetlands are well-suited for wastewater treatment purposes. (c) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.