A microtiter plate assay (MPA) for soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) was applied to samples in overlying water and pore water as well as in three forms of environmental soil test phosphorus (P) types: water soluble phosphorus (WSP),diluted calcium chloride extractable phosphorus (PCaCl2), and Olsen-P in the sediments of Taihu Lake, China, where potential P release in response to pH was analyzed. MPA for rapid P analysis was shown to be promising when applied on samples of natural water and sediment extracts. Concentrations of WSP and PCaCl2 in the sediments were much lower than those of Olsen-P. Olsen-P levels in the littoral sediments along the north coast of Meiliang Bay in Taihu Lake (80to 140 mg kg-1) were much higher than those in the mouth of the bay (less than 50 mg kg-1). The risk of P release in the mouth area of Meiliang Bay was lower than that in the north littoral zone with a risk of sediment P release induced by pH increases.