B11G-0513
Degradation State, Sources, and Reactivity of Dissolved Organic Matter from an Amino Acid Time Series in an Agricultural Watershed
Monday, 14 December 2015
Poster Hall (Moscone South)
Sandrine J Matiasek, California State University Chico, Chico, CA, United States, Brian A Pellerin, USGS California Water Science Center Sacramento, Sacramento, CA, United States, Robert G Spencer, Florida State University, Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science, Tallahassee, FL, United States, Brian A Bergamaschi, California State University Sacramento, Sacramento, CA, United States and Peter Hernes, University of California - Davis, Davis, CA, United States
Abstract:
A detailed time series of dissolved amino acids was obtained in an agricultural watershed in the northern Central Valley, California, USA to investigate the roles of hydrologic and seasonal changes on the composition of dissolved organic matter (DOM). Total hydrolysable amino acid (THAA) concentrations ranged from 0.55 to 9.96 μM (mean 3.76 ± 1.80 μM) and not only peaked with discharge during winter storms, but also remained elevated throughout the irrigation season when discharge was low. Summer irrigation was a critical hydrologic regime for DOM cycling, since it mobilized DOM similar in concentration and reactivity to DOM released during winter storms for an extended period of time, with the largest amino acid contributions to the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and the dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) pools (3.4 ‒ 3.7 % DOC-AA, 17.4 ‒ 22.5 % DON-AA), the largest proportion of basic amino acids (B/(B+A) = 0.19 ‒ 0.22), and the largest degradation index values (mean 1.37 ± 0.96). The mole percent of non-protein amino acids, commonly considered as an indicator of microbial degradation, decreased with DOM processing and was highest during summer (mean 4.1 ± 1.1%). A lack of correlation between THAA concentrations and UV-Vis absorbance and fluorescence proxies (including “protein-like” fluorophores B and T) indicated that optical properties may be limited in representing amino acid dynamics in this system. A new parameter for DOM processing derived from trends in individual amino acids demonstrated strong potential for inferring the extent of DOM degradation in freshwater systems. The biogeochemical relevance of irrigation practices is heightened by timing, since the additional export of reactive DOM coincides with enhanced downstream DOM processing in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, a critical habitat for endangered species serving as water source for 25 million Californians.
