Articles | Volume 16, issue 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-16-841-2025
https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-16-841-2025
Research article
 | 
11 Jun 2025
Research article |  | 11 Jun 2025

Estimating lateral nitrogen transfers over the last century through the global river network using a land surface model

Minna Ma, Haicheng Zhang, Ronny Lauerwald, Philippe Ciais, and Pierre Regnier

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Cited articles

Aitkenhead-Peterson, J. A., Alexander, J. E., and Clair, T. A.: Dissolved Organic Carbon and Dissolved Organic Nitrogen Export from Forested Watersheds in Nova Scotia: Identifying Controlling Factors, Global Biogeochem. Cy., 19, GB4016, https://doi.org/10.1029/2004GB002438, 2005. 
Akbarzadeh, Z., Maavara, T., Slowinski, S., and Cappellen, P. V.: Effects of Damming on River Nitrogen Fluxes: A Global Analysis, Global Biogeochem. Cy., 33, 1339–1357, https://doi.org/10.1029/2019GB006222, 2019. 
Alexander, R. B., Böhlke, J. K., Boyer, E. W., David, M. B., Harvey, J. W., Mulholland, P. J., Seitzinger, S. P., Tobias, C. R., Tonitto, C., and Wollheim, W. F.: Dynamic Modeling of Nitrogen Losses in River Networks Unravels the Coupled Effects of Hydrological and Biogeochemical Processes, Biogeochemistry, 93, 91–116, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-008-9274-8, 2009. 
Andreadis, K. M., Schumann, G. J. P., and Pavelsky, T.: A Simple Global River Bankfull Width and Depth Database, Water Resour. Res., 49, 7164–68, https://doi.org/10.1002/wrcr.20440, 2013. 
Arnold, J. G., Srinivasan, R., Muttiah, R. S., and Williams, J. R.: Large area hydrologic modeling and assessment Part I: model development, JAWRA J. Am. Water Resour. Assoc., 34, 73–89, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-1688.1998.tb05961.x, 1998. 
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A new offline model (LSM_Nlateral_Off) was developed to simulate the lateral transfer of nitrogen from land to oceans through the river network, incorporating the decomposition of DON (dissolved organic N) and PON (particulate organic N) and denitrification of DIN (dissolved inorganic N) during fluvial transport. Evaluations using observational data indicate that the model reproduces observed rates and seasonal variations in water discharge and N flow well.
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