Modeling and Evaluating Integrated Pollution Control Measures in Rivers: A Case Study of the Lianjiang River Basin

With rapid industrialization and urbanization, water pollution in urban rivers has become increasingly severe, posing significant threats to regional ecological environments and water security. The Puning section of the Lianjiang River in Guangdong Province, China, suffers from complex pollution originating from multiple sources, including domestic sewage, industrial wastewater, and agricultural non-point source pollution. This underscores an urgent need for integrated river pollution control in the region. In this study, a coupled hydrodynamic-water quality model was established to systematically analyze and simulate water quality conditions in the Puning section. A total of 22 pollution control scenarios were proposed and evaluated. The results indicated that most monitoring sections in the Puning segment failed to meet the Class V surface water quality standards, with notably high concentrations of chemical oxygen demand (COD), ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N), and total phosphorus (TP). Numerical simulations revealed that the multi-source interception scenario—simultaneously intercepting inflows at Tiande Bridge (Baikeng Lake), Dayangmei (Liusha Zhonghe), and Liudoupu (Liusha Zhonghe)—performed best in reducing pollutant concentrations. Specifically, this scenario achieved reductions exceeding 90% in NH3-N and TP concentrations. Furthermore, the study demonstrates that for basins with complex pollution sources, integrated management strategies—including the construction of wastewater treatment facilities, control of point and non-point sources, and ecological restoration measures—can effectively improve water quality and optimize the water environmental capacity. These findings provide theoretical and technical support for water environment management in the Lianjiang River Basin and offer valuable insights for water quality management in similar regions.