Water Dynamics and Role of Groundwater in the 'Lagoa dos Barros', South of Brazil

22/09/2021

Lagoa dos Barros is located in the Litoral Medio basin, in the coastal plain of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The lagoon covers 92 km2 of fresh water and is extremely important for the economic activities of the region, especially agriculture with irrigated rice crops that use pond water during the summer. However, by the end of 2019, eutrophication begins to be visible in the lagoon, reaching its peak in May 2020. Thus, the wastewater treatment plant, which was set up in 2009, but which started its operation in late 2018, was considered the main possible cause due to the discharge of its effluents without tertiary treatment, which removes nutrients, into the water body. Thus, the focus of this study was to identify the primary sources of water for Lagoa dos Barros so that it would be easier to identify the most likely cause of Eutrophication that occurred in 2020. Different approaches were applied to interpret the dynamics of the complex area. The physical model together with different approaches such as water balance and aquifer recharge estimation are applied to evaluate the relationships between aquifer and lake systems. Then, check that the contribution of groundwater to the Lagoa dos Barros is not potentially a source of nutrients that could have been involved in the cause of the high concentration of nutrients that causes the blooming of algae in the period in which it was observed.

Autores da comunidade :

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  P

  Priscila Kayani Ghellere Vanzella

  ist195322

Orientadores desta instituição:

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  R

  Ramiro Joaquim De Jesus Neves

  ist11787

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  A

  Ana Isabel Baião Ramos de Oliveira

  ist156328

- Engenharia Química

- Português

Instituto Superior Técnico