A proposal for artificial wetlands, biodiversity drivers that purify polluted waters for the recovery of urban lakes in Concepción, Chile

Abstract

In Concepción, Chile there are five urban lakes that provide different environmental services (recreation, occasional water supplies for various purposes, rainwater accumulation ponds), but very specifically they constitute biodiversity spaces and this is where their substantial and unique contribution lies for the city. The objective of the research presented here is to demonstrate how, based on the design and use of artificial wetlands as technologies to treat the waters entering Concepción´s urban lakes, an environmental improvement is made to theses lakes and the biodiversity of the surrounding environment increases. The analysis of the bodies of water was mainly based on a planimetric analysis, through observation and a photographic record, and a study of physicochemical quality indicators - such as total nitrogen (TN) and phosphorus (P) - and environmental quality, which was evaluated with the presence of macrophytes. Among the main contributions established, it is noteworthy to mention that the installation of artificial wetlands before lake entrances significantly reduces the polluting power of incoming waters and the chain of deterioration ends, thereby improving the urban ecosystem. In this way, the proposal becomes an efficient instrument to increase biodiversity and people´s quality of life.