Water Intelligence Online © IWA Publishing 2003

Integrated reservoir management: Smartinsko Lake case study

A. Sajn Slak¹, T. Bulc¹ and D. Vrhovsek²

¹Limnos, Water Ecology Group, Podlimbarskega 31, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia

²Private researcher, Pozarnice 41, 1351 Brezovica pri Ljubljani, Slovenia

Reservoir Smartinsko Lake is used for flood control, low flow enhancement, recreation and fishing in isolated and nonarticulated actions. The consequence of sectoral approach was increasing degradation of water quality. Integrated reservoir management was started to implement. Study comprises data collected from 1972 to 2000. Limnological research of lake ecosystem was worked out. Thermal stratification, nutrient concentrations and phytoplankton species composition showed eutrophic status. List of polluters was prepared. Inflow Koprivnica and non-treated communal wastewater from the settlements on the area of direct gravitation were the biggest allochthonous sources of pollution whereas sediment represented the biggest autochthonous source of nutrients, especially phosphorus. ‘Soft’ technologies for lake protection and reclamation were proposed. Phytoremediation methods, abstraction of nutrient rich hypolimnetic water and sound lake management would return lake into mesotrophic status appropriate for water recreation and other uses.

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UNIQUE ID: 200303009