Variation in chemical composition of the River Frome, England, from 1965 to 1972

Abstract

Summary This study covers a 7‐year period from 1965 to 1972, and shows the variation in flow, water chemistry and throughput of nutrients. The annual discharge of the River Frome varied considerably from year to year, ranging from a mean value of 4.48 m 3 sec −1 in 1971 to one of 8.38 m 3 sec −1 in 1966. The mean annual nutrient losses calculated over all 7 years of study from the River Frome catchment were: Nitrate 11.4 kg ha −1 , phosphorus 0.49 kg ha −1 and potassium 8.4 kg ha −1 . There has been an increase in annual throughput (in years of similar flow) of 21% in phosphate and 41% in nitrate from 1965 to 1972.