A six-month series of high-resolution synchronous stream discharge and total phosphorus (TP) concentration data is presented from a 5 km2 agricultural catchment in the Lough Neagh basin, Northern Ireland. The data are hourly averages of 10-minute measurements using a new bankside, automatic, continuous monitoring technology. Three TP transfer "event-types" occur in this catchment: (1) chronic, storm independent transfers; (2) acute, storm dependent transfers; (3) acute, storm independent transfers. Event-type 2 transferred over 90% of the total 279 kg TP load in 39% of the total period; it corresponded to diffuse transfers from agricultural soils. Event-types 1 and 3, however, maintained the river in a highly eutrophic state between storm events and were characteristic of point source pollution, despite there being no major industrial or municipal point sources. Managing P transfers at the catchment scale requires a robust monitoring technology to differentiate between dynamic, multiple sources and associated event types and so enable a reliable assessment of the performance of mitigation measures, monitored at catchment outlets. The synchronous and continuous TP and discharge data series generated in this study demonstrate how this is possible.

High-resolution measurements of total phosphorus (TP) concentrations in a stream draining a 5 km² agricultural catchment (a sub-catchment of Lough Neagh in Northern Ireland) were made every 10 min by continuous flow instrumentation using new homogenisation, digestion and colorimetric phases. Concurrently, rainfall and stream discharge data were collected at 5 and 15 min intervals. Major P flushing episodes during storm events peaked on the rising limbs of storm hydrographs. A period of baseflow also indicated the importance of other sources that maintain the stream in a eutrophic state between storm events. These data provide insights into catchment processes that conform to definite patterns that, in a coarser sampling regime, might ordinarily be attributed to sampling and analytical "noise".