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Eutrophication is a type of polution
- https://www.bbc.com/bitesize/guides/zp2cmsg/revision/3Biodiversity & the effect of human interaction on ecosystems
Senior Library Books
- Sustainable Land Management byCall Number: 333. 730 994 SUISBN: 9781921507557Publication Date: 2011, July 27Land degradation can have severe economic and environmental consequences. Almost two-thirds of land in Australia has been modified for human use, primarily for grazing on natural vegetation. Clearing of native vegetation continues to occur for agriculture, plantation forestry, and urban development. Over the past two centuries, as land use has intensified for a growing population in this arid land, vast areas of native vegetation have been cleared or degraded, resulting in adverse affects on biodiversity, soil and water quality and the spread of weeds, feral pests and diseases. This book examines the damaging impacts of Australia's land use and agricultural activity, and proposes improvements to current farming systems, including more sustainable use of water and soil, and development of new systems for irrigation, fertilisation and water use. To ensure long-term sustainability, land managers need to consider economic, social and environmental factors. How do we meet the needs of the present without depleting
Introduction to Eutrophication
- https://www.britannica.com/science/eutrophicationEutrophication, the gradual increase in the concentration of phosphorus, nitrogen, and other plant nutrients in an aging aquatic ecosystem such as a lake. The productivity or fertility of such an ecosystem increases as the amount of organic material that can be broken down into nutrients increases. This material enters the ecosystem primarily by runoff from land that carries debris and products of the reproduction and death of terrestrial organisms. Blooms, or great concentrations of algae and microscopic organisms, often develop on the surface, preventing the light penetration and oxygen absorption necessary for underwater life.
- Government of Western Australia. (n.d.). Print Page Eutrophication (nutrient enrichment). Retrieved from http://www.water.wa.gov.au/water-topics/waterways/threats-to-our-waterways/statewide-river-assessmentThe Department of Water assesses the concentrations of nutrients in a variety of water bodies including river and estuary systems, stormwater drains and groundwater. Understanding the concentrations of nutrients both within and entering our rivers and estuaries will assist the department in assessing the health of waterways and in determining management solutions for impacts such as algal blooms and fish kill events.
- http://www.ozcoasts.gov.au/indicators/coastal_eutrophication.jspThe main cause of eutrophication in coastal waterways is nutrient overenrichment (nitrogen, phosphorus and silica). Other factors influence plant growth and the build-up of nutrient concentrations, and hence modify (or buffer) the response of a system to increased nutrient loads. These factors include hydrologic residence times, mixing characteristics, water temperature, light climate and grazing pressure.
- Queensland Government. (2018). Catchment care. Retrieved from https://www.ehp.qld.gov.au/water/catchment_care.htmlThis government website explains Everything you do in your backyard, your school playground, your farm or your business then has the potential to affect waterways lower down the catchment,and ultimately the ocean and marine life.
- NSW Government Office of Environment and Heritage. (2013). Coastal Eutrophication Risk Assessment Tool. Retrieved from https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/water/dswphotspotra.htmDECCW have developed a risk assessment tool to help identify and prioritise land use planning decisions that protect and preserve the health of estuaries in NSW. The tool is known as CERAT (Coastal Eutrophication Risk Assessment Tool) and can be used by non-technical experts.
CERAT consists of a water quality database, spatial information for an estuary and surrounding catchment, and a coupled series of catchment and estuary models for every estuary in NSW. - Salleh, A. (2009). Jellyfish threaten to 'dominate' oceans. Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2009/06/08/2592139.htmRichardson and colleagues reviewed literature linking jellyfish blooms with overfishing and eutrophication - high levels of nutrients.
Jellyfish are normally kept in check by fish, which eat small jellyfish and compete for jellyfish food such as zooplankton, he says.
But, with overfishing, jellyfish numbers are increasing. Jellyfish feed on fish eggs and larvae, further impacting on fish numbers.
To add insult to injury, nitrogen and phosphorous in run-off cause red phytoplankton blooms, which create low-oxygen dead zones where jellyfish survive, but fish can't.
"You can think of them like a protected area for jellyfish," says Richardson. - Sinha, E., Michalak, A. M., & Balaji, V. (2017). Eutrophication will increase during the 21st century as a result of precipitation changes. Science, 357(6349), 405-408. doi:10.1126/science.aan2409Eutrophication, or excessive nutrient enrichment, threatens water resources across the globe. We show that climate change–induced precipitation changes alone will substantially increase (19 ± 14%) riverine total nitrogen loading within the continental United States by the end of the century for the “business-as-usual” scenario. The impacts, driven by projected increases in both total and extreme precipitation, will be especially strong for the Northeast and the corn belt of the United States.
- Phosphorus pollution dangerously high in global fresh water. (2018). Chemistry in Australia, 11. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.db.plcscotch.wa.edu.au/login.aspx?direct=true&db=azh&AN=129358396&site=ehost-liveThe article focuses on the rise in the level of phosphorus pollution in freshwater basins around the world. Topics discussed include eutrophication resulting from phosphorus pollution causing algal blooms, it leading to the mortality of water organisms due to lack of oxygen and light, and factors contributing to phosphorus pollution being fertilisers, sewage and industry wastes.
Definitions
- ecosystem noun - a system, or a group of interconnected elements, formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their environment.
- runoff Runoff, in hydrology, quantity of water discharged in surface streams. Runoff includes not only the waters that travel over the land surface and through channels to reach a stream but also interflow, the water that infiltrates the soil surface and travels by means of gravity toward a stream channel (always above the main groundwater level) and eventually empties into the channel. Runoff also includes groundwater that is discharged into a stream; streamflow that is composed entirely of groundwater is termed base flow, or fair-weather runoff, and it occurs where a stream channel intersects the water table.
- phosphorus Phosphorus (P), nonmetallic chemical element of the nitrogen family (Group 15 [Va] of the periodic table) that at room temperature is a colourless, semitransparent, soft, waxy solid that glows in the dark.
- nitrogen Nitrogen (N), nonmetallic element of Group 15 [Va] of the periodic table. It is a colourless, odourless, tasteless gas that is the most plentiful element in Earth’s atmosphere and is a constituent of all living matter.
- water-bloom Water bloom, dense aquatic population of microscopic photosynthetic organisms produced by an abundance of nutrient salts in surface water, coupled with adequate sunlight for photosynthesis. The microorganisms or the toxic substances that they release may discolour the water, deplete its oxygen content, poison aquatic animals and waterfowl, and irritate the skin and respiratory tract of humans. Single species of algae, diatoms, or dinoflagellates, reproducing every few hours, may dominate a blooming population; the number of individuals per litre (quart) of water may range from 1,000 to 60 million.
- algae Algae, singular alga, members of a group of predominantly aquatic photosynthetic organisms of the kingdom Protista. Algae have many types of life cycles, and they range in size from microscopic Micromonas species to giant kelps that reach 60 metres (200 feet) in length. Their photosynthetic pigments are more varied than those of plants, and their cells have features not found among plants and animals. In addition to their ecological roles as oxygen producers and as the food base for almost all aquatic life, algae are economically important as a source of crude oil and as sources of food and a number of pharmaceutical and industrial products for humans. The taxonomy of algae is contentious and subject to rapid change as new molecular information is discovered. The study of algae is called phycology, and a person who studies algae is a phycologist.
- oxygen Oxygen (O), nonmetallic chemical element of Group 16 (VIa, or the oxygen group) of the periodic table. Oxygen is a colourless, odourless, tasteless gas essential to living organisms, being taken up by animals, which convert it to carbon dioxide; plants, in turn, utilize carbon dioxide as a source of carbon and return the oxygen to the atmosphere. Oxygen forms compounds by reaction with practically any other element, as well as by reactions that displace elements from their combinations with each other; in many cases, these processes are accompanied by the evolution of heat and light and in such cases are called combustions. Its most important compound is water.
Explore ScienceDirect
- ScienceDirectAt ScienceDirect, explore their wide selection of journal articles and book chapters featuring original research, insightful analysis, current theory and more.
Cultural Eutrophication
- Cultural eutrophication. (2011). In D. S. Blanchfield (Ed.), Environmental Encyclopedia. Detroit: Gale. Retrieved from http://link.galegroup.com.db.plcscotch.wa.edu.au/apps/doc/CV2644150345/GIC?u=61wa_scotch&sid=GIC&xid=40065647One of the most important types of water pollution, cultural eutrophication describes human-generated fertilization of water bodies. Cultural denotes human involvement, and eutrophication means truly nourished, from the Greek word eutrophic. Key pollutants contributing to cultural eutrophication include nitrates and phosphates, the main sources are treated sewage and runoff from farms and urban areas.