Partial Weir Opening Is Associated with Shifts in Benthic Diatom Diversity and Assemblage Reorganization in a Monsoonal River

Abstract

Using a coordinated multi-year monitoring dataset collected during the 2020–2024 partial-opening management period, we examined benthic diatom assemblages across the Sejong, Gongju, and Baekje weirs in the Geum River, Republic of Korea. Seasonal surveys at eight stations were used to evaluate spatiotemporal variation in water quality and benthic diatom community structure under this hydrological management regime. Annual basin-wide averages showed gradual interannual changes in water quality, including declines in total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, turbidity, and biochemical oxygen demand after 2021, accompanied by increased dissolved oxygen. Diatom community indices based on relative-abundance data showed corresponding temporal variation, with decreased dominance and increased Shannon diversity, evenness, and taxon richness. Ordination analyses indicated gradual differentiation between the earlier (2020–2021) and later (2022–2024) monitoring groups within the study period, whereas random forest models showed limited explanatory power and were treated as exploratory. Overall, the results support benthic diatoms as sensitive descriptors of ecological change in flow-regulated monsoonal rivers while underscoring the value of long-term monitoring where true pre-intervention biological baselines are unavailable.