Consequences of livestock grazing on water quality and benthic algal biomass in a Canadian natural grassland plateau
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Authors: G. J. Scrimgeour, and S. Kendall
Date: 2002
Journal: Environmental Management
Volume: 29
Number: 6
Pages: 824-844
Summary of Methods: In Cypress Hills Provincial Park in Alberta, Canada, the effects of livestock grazing on water quality, riparian vegetation and bank stability were examined. Enclosures were established on three streams and a fourth stream had no enclosures but a reach with heavy grazing and a reach with light grazing. Six yearling steers grazed each stream in one of four treatments (no grazing, June-August, August-September and June-September) for two summers. Streambank stability, in-stream vegetation cover, and riparian vegetation biomass were measured prior to enclosure establishment and after grazing. Algal biomass and water quality and chemistry samples were taken in each enclosure and just below the enclosure. Nitrite, nitrate, and soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) were sampled at the watershed scale.
Article Summary / Main Points: Streambank stability, in-stream vegetation cover and riparian vegetation biomass were lower in all grazed treatments versus the non-grazed treatment. Total phosphorus, SRP, nitrite, nitrate, and dissolved oxygen content were similar among treatments and only phosphorus measurements were different in certain streams. Algal biomass was not clearly correlated with livestock grazing. Nitrite, nitrate, (SRP) and algal biomass, sampled at the watershed scale, were different among streams and distance along the stream. Nitrite and nitrate concentrations decreased downstream. Nitrogen was limited on two of the streams during both seasons, but not in summer on the third stream and not in the summer on the fourth stream.
Vegetation Types: Northern Mixed Prairie Riparian and Wetlands
MLRA Ecoregions: Not Applicable
Agrovoc Control Words: Riparian zones Rangelands Wildlife
Article Review Type: Refereed
Article Type: Experimental Research
Keywords: agriculture, livestock, water quality, riparian, algae
Annotation: This design of this study was unique as they had all four treatments on successive stream reaches instead of separating the treatments onto different streams. The stability and vegetation results are applicable to most riparian areas with similar grazing patterns. The water chemistry results are more site specific due to water flow and riparian influences on the stream.
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