...If one were to visit the U.S. Geological Survey website and searched for a definition of the word Eutrophication, they would see several definitions by various people or organization. Regardless of how it is stated it comes down to is a process that occurs in a body of water becomes over inundated with nutrients such as phosphates or nitrates (U.S. Geological Survey, 2011) In an unspoiled or pristine aquatic ecosystem there is the natural and balanced production of plants at a steady pace. New plants will biomass at a steady rate which is sustained by the nitrogen and phosphorus released as byproducts by microbial and animal metabolisms. Many times the balance of nitrogen and phosphorus is disrupted and changed due to human activity. With the increase of N and P comes the unnaturally high rate of plant production and organic matter (Cloern, Krantz, & Hogan, 2010). Many times this will occur due to discharges of untreated sewage, sewage treatment plants, or runoff of fertilizers from farm or lawns. Other times it may be due to a natural occurrence. Nutrients can come from many sources such as dead leaves, fish food, fish waste, dead algae and other plants. Under the normal circumstance a well-balanced pond or lake has enough oxygen to breakdown the organic materials and they decompose (Natural Environmental Systems, LLC, 2011). However, when the water becomes enriched with nutrients it promotes the growth of algae due the fact that it grows faster than larger vascular plants...
Words: 502 - Pages: 3
...Eutrophication Eutrophication is the process by which a body of water becomes rich in dissolved nutrients from fertilizers or sewage, thereby encouraging the growth and decomposition of oxygen-depleting plant life and resulting in harm to other organisms (Encarta dictionary 2007). This is one of the ecological problems that are affecting PAU thought others don’t see it as a problem. Thus, the essay will discuss further on how it is started and evidences of its existence, how to minimize or prevent it from eventuating, and how it affects the environment in which we live in and give a real case study of its effects. Eutrophication began to develop on the lakes of PAU when the campus department stopped cleaning the lakes in order to let the birds to lay their eggs on the flowers growing in the lakes. This is evident in lake two. This has led to eutrophication due to the overcrowding of plant life in the lakes. Some proof that the lakes are becoming entropic are that they smell, overgrowth of plants means the level of oxygen is depleted and less penetration of sunlight, algae are starting to cover the surface of the lakes. Therefore, this shows that lakes here at PAU are starting to become eutropic. Prevention is better than cure therefore it is better to prevent the lakes from becoming eutropic than to cure it after it has become eutropic. As stated in the article, ‘How to cure Eutrophication’ (2012, May 17) that a pond that has become eutropic is hard to rehabilitate. This is...
Words: 627 - Pages: 3
...Explain how human activities can cause an imbalance in biogeochemical cycling and lead to problems such as cultural eutrophication and fish kills. There are many reasons on how human activities can lead to he imbalance of biochemical cycling. In reality anything that the can cause damage to our natural environment, change the imbalance, or that our natural environment is not familiar with can damage the balance. Cultural eutrophication and fish kills are mainly caused due to the lack of oxygen also known as anoxia. Although eutrophication is naturally occurring, it is a slow and inevitable process. Yet human when humans speed up that process by adding pollutants into our ecosystem, this will cause the death and premature aging of bodies of water due to the contamination with sewage, chemicals, and fertilizers. This will then cause the slow death of that body of water due to anoxia killing all living things within it. The comparison between opportunistic versus equilibrium populations are as follows: opportunistic species use the “r-strategy” and the equilibrium uses the “k-strategy”. In the Opportunistic species, the “r” defines the species instrinsic rate of increase. This species produces millions of sperms and eggs mainly because only a minimal amount will actually become offspring. Whereas, in the equilibrium species, the “k” defines the carrying capacity of the environment. This species, in contrast, produces a small amount of sperm and eggs, thereby, producing less...
Words: 382 - Pages: 2
...their activities in natural waters, like lakes, ponds, streams, rivers, estuaries(brackish water), and oceans. Domestic and industrial wastewater enters lakes and streams and its effects on microbial life are important factors in aquatic microbiology. Also, how methods of treating wastewater mimics a natural filtering process. ------------------------------------------------- Aquatic microbiology & sewage treatment Aquatic Microbiology refers to the study of microorganisms and their activities in natural waters, like lakes, ponds, streams, rivers, estuaries(brackish water), and oceans. Domestic and industrial wastewater enters lakes and streams and its effects on microbial life are important factors in aquatic microbiology. Also, how methods of treating wastewater mimics a natural filtering process. BIO: 212 M7A3 Project 2 Dr. Ilse Silva-Krott BIO: 212 M7A3 Project 2 Dr. Ilse Silva-Krott OUTLINE: Aquatic Microbiology and Sewage Treatment I. Freshwater and Seawater habitats of microorganisms II. How wastewater pollution is a public health and ecological problem III. Causes and Effect of Eutrophication IV. How water is tested for bacteriological purity V. How pathogens are removed from drinking water VI. Compare primary, secondary, tertiary sewage treatment A large number of microorganisms usually is indicative of a high amount of nutrients in any body of water. Water contaminated by inflows...
Words: 2421 - Pages: 10
...1. Explain how human activities can cause an imbalance in biogeochemical cycling and lead to problems such as cultural eutrophication and fish kills. Eutrophication is a naturally occurring, slow, and inevitable process. However, when it is accelerated by human activity and water pollution called cultural eutrophication, it can lead to the premature aging and death of a body of water. Cultural eutrophication occurs when humans speed up the aging process by allowing excessive amounts of nutrients in such forms as sewage, detergents, and fertilizers to enter the ecosystem. 2. Compare and contrast the traits and growth patterns of opportunistic versus equilibrium populations. Provide one example of each. Opportunistic species use the r-strategy. They produce millions of eggs and sperm since only a small percent will actually meet, join, and become offspring. Opportunistic species are often the first to colonize a new environment with a “boom and bursts” growth pattern, with a short life cycle. They tend to “crash” when they run out of food, space, oxygen, sunlight, or whatever the limiting factors is in that environment. Examples are most insects, and corals, barnacles, clams, scallops, and oysters, who spawn and fertilize their eggs in the water. Equilibrium species use the K-strategy. The carrying capacity of the environment. These species produce much fewer offspring and usually brood them and/or take care of them in other ways. The populations of these species may first...
Words: 388 - Pages: 2
...Report Jonathan W. Moore, Daniel E. Schindler, Mark D. Scheuerell, Danielle Smith and Jonathan Frodge Lake Eutrophication at the Urban Fringe, Seattle Region, USA Nutrient pollution and associated eutrophication of freshwaters threaten the ecological integrity and the services provided to humans by lakes. We examined how human residential development influenced the level of lake eutrophication in the Seattle, WA, USA, region. We surveyed 30 lakes and measured 3 indicators of eutrophication: concentrations of chlorophyll-a and phosphorus, and the proportion of algae that are inedible to zooplankton. We classified lakes based on the waste-treatment method for shoreline homes: septic, sewer, and undeveloped lakes. Septic lakes occurred along the urban-rural fringe while sewer lakes occurred near urban centers. Septic lakes were more eutrophic than sewer lakes and undeveloped lakes, as indicated by higher levels of phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. These results suggest that septic systems contribute to the high levels of eutrophication in lakes at the urbanrural fringe. Lakes at the urban-rural fringe represent an opportunity for proactive management of urban expansion to minimize lake eutrophication. A lake without shoreline development. Undeveloped lakes were less eutrophic than lakes with shoreline houses. Photo: D. Schindler. INTRODUCTION Residential development in the United States has increased substantially over the last 50 years. Much of...
Words: 6539 - Pages: 27
...related to biological, ecological, and human health effects. This includes air, water, and soil pollution and climate change. New techniques for the study and measurement of pollutants and their effects are also encouraged as well as papers on new types of environmental challenges such as pollution/antibiotic resistances of organisms. Emerging pollutions are of eminent interest, such as microplastics, electronic wastes, light or noise pollution as long as they can clearly be related to the biological effects mentioned above. Papers must be process-orientated and/or hypotheses-based to be considered for population. Papers based on field studies are given priority for publication over micro/meso cosmos studies. Papers, such as meta analyses, that report findings from re-examination and interpretation of existing data are welcome. Modeling papers are welcome only to a certain extent, i.e., they must be related to a specific pollution issue or process that is potentially of ecological and/or human health implications. Critical review papers and commentaries are also of high interest as are letters to the editor. The editors do not wish to publish papers that describe results from routine surveys and monitoring programs that are primarily of local or regional interest. Descriptions of well-known pollutants, such as legacy pollutants, in yet another location are not of interest. Papers about sewage, waste and wastewater treatment and management as well as standard techniques in agronomy...
Words: 483 - Pages: 2
...In some marshes there is evidence that top-down control, when disrupted by human interference, leads to trophic cascades degrading marsh habitat. In the northeastern USA, purple marsh crabs (Sesarma reticulata) are important herbivores in many salt marsh systems. When fish that predate on purple marsh crabs are overharvested, this releases the marsh crabs from predation; the newly abundant crab populations then devour salt marsh patches, sometimes collapsing the marsh platform (Altieri et al. 2012). In the southeastern USA, a similar phenomenon may occur with snail herbivory, potentially causing die-off when snail abundances pass a marsh-specific threshold (Silliman & Bertness 2002). Excess nutrients in a system from eutrophication can also...
Words: 924 - Pages: 4
...fresh, flowing water. Negative Effects There have been several and harmful ways that our growing human population has affected freshwater aquatic ecosystems. Whether it is directly or indirectly humans have changed the natural order of the aquatic environment, one such example is when people build dams somewhere in the tropics it creates a reservoir which can house snails and mosquitoes. It can also create a fishery which can accommodate many blackflies for their need for freshwater, but in the process a person done two wrong things in building a dam in the first place. A disease which is called river blindness carried by the blackflies can infect a quantity of people living in the area, the disease can spread due to the blackflies being able to travel long distances and the parasite that produces the larvae may cause blindness in a person. Another effect that a growing human population can have on a freshwater aquatic ecosystem is what scientists call eutrophication, in a eutrophic system a high concentration of phosphorus and nitrogen is contained. Agricultural fertilizers that come from runoff or leaching and groundwater flow is where the nitrogen comes from and the phosphorus comes from the discharge of raw sewage and runoff that comes from farmlands and they enter the lentil waters. The nutrient increase required for...
Words: 1974 - Pages: 8
...1. There are many ways in which human activities may lead to an imbalance in biochemical cycling: Something that the natural environment is unfamiliar which can harm the chemical imbalance. One of the many negative impacts caused by eutrophication and increased algal growth; is a decrease in the oxygen available, known as anoxia. These anoxic conditions have the ability to harm fishes and other aquatic animals. However, it is true that algae produce oxygen, but that is possible when an enough amount of light is available. Eutrophication reduces the clarification in water and visible light underwater. When there isn’t enough visible light for algae they stop the production of oxygen and begin the consumption of oxygen. 2. Opportunistic species...
Words: 334 - Pages: 2
...Fertilizes and pesticides have been really important to farmers all over the world and the consumption of such chemicals increase every year even though in Greece the consumption decreases. “Fertilizers are any solid, liquid or gaseous substances containing one or more plant nutrients in known amount, that is applied to the soil, directly on the plant (foliage) or added to aqueous solutions (as in fertigation) to maintain soil fertility, improve crop development, yield and/or crop quality” (International Fertilizer Industry, No Date). From the other hand “pesticides are chemicals used to prevent, destroy, or repel pests” (EPA, 5/9/2012). Fertilizes and pesticides have a big history which starts decade ago as technology improves the methods of using pesticides and fertilizers changes rapidly. The first pesticide according to Toxipedia (Katerina Lah, May 09 2011) was created by the Chinese around 1000BC and it was sulfur, the Chinese were using sulfur back then to control bacteria and fungus. Sulfur is also used nowadays from farmers in fungides to protect the plant from diseases. The next big invention again by the Chinese was arsenic, arsenic was uses as insecticide (Kill insects) and as herbicide (Weed killer). This category of pesticides is called mineral and metals, but the most important pesticides that humans use are the synthetic ones. The most important synthetic pesticides are the DDTs. DDT was firs use in huge amount in WWII to control the lice that spread typhus and...
Words: 1019 - Pages: 5
...Chesapeake program partners have mutual restorative objective, they tend to implement restorative actions based on their resources. Their restorative objective include but not limited to * Reducing Pollution * Restoring Habitats * Managing Fishery * Protecting Watershed * Fostering Stewardship 3. Point source nutrient loading is a form of pollution which can be easily regulated because the nutrients are known to originate from a specific location. However in a non-point source nutrient loading the nutrient’s origin is not easily identified, which makes this kind of nutrient loading difficult to contain. 4. The greatest contributor of nutrient loading in the bay is agricultural run-offs. 5. Eutrophication is the enrichment of the ecosystem with chemical substances such as nitrogen and/or phosphorous. It can also be said to be the ecosystem’s reaction to the introduction of natural and artificial substances into aquatic habitats. An excess amount of nutrient loading fuels the growth of certain dinoflagellates, causing algae bloom. Algae bloom then cause turbidity of aquatic bodies thus hindering the penetration of light to underwater grasses. It also creates dead zones in aquatic bodies where during decomposition, denies the water of oxygen and hence suffocates marine lives that need oxygen for survival. 6. Although these strategies to recreate a...
Words: 699 - Pages: 3
...lower salt content. The saltier bottom layer is heavier. This stratification tends to reduce exchange between the layers, which results in extremely low oxygen levels in deeper waters. Any factors such as pollution that lower oxygen levels further can have a devastating effect on bottom-dwelling and deep-water sea life. Second, the Baltic's connection with the North Sea is a narrow channel, so it takes about 50 years for the Baltic to exchange all of its water. The long turnover time and stratification result in a dangerous buildup of harmful pollutants. The four issues of greatest concern are (1) oil spills, (2) eutrophication, (3) the bioaccumulation and biomagnsfication of toxic pollution, and (4) accidental discharges...
Words: 994 - Pages: 4
...Should all farming be organic? 1.0 The two main types of farming this report will look into are: (1) Organic agriculture- Organic farming (2) Modern Agriculture- Intensive farming Organic farming (as defined by the Codex Alimentarius Commission) is a holistic production management system that avoids use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides and genetically modified organisms, minimizes pollution of air, soil and water, and optimizes the health and productivity of interdependent communities of plants, animals and people 1. To achieve this, organic farming relies on a number of objectives and principles, as well as common practices designed to minimise the human impact on the environment, while ensuring the agricultural system operates as naturally as possible2. Typical organic farming practices include2: • Wide crop rotation as a prerequisite for an efficient use of on-site resources • Very strict limits on chemical synthetic pesticide and synthetic fertiliser use, livestock antibiotics, food additives and processing aids and other inputs • Prohibition of the use of genetically modified organisms • Taking advantage of on-site resources, such as livestock manure for fertiliser or feed produced on the farm • Choosing plant and animal species that are resistant to disease and adapted to local conditions • Raising livestock in free-range, open-air systems and providing them with organic feed • Using animal husbandry practices appropriate to different livestock species ...
Words: 4013 - Pages: 17
...today. They are in existence earlier than 1881 and each one of them has a significant cultural and social significance associated with it. Water being the lifeline of communities and the prime determinant of the sustainability, settlements in the past were located in the proximity of easily accessible water resources. With the technological advancement in the field of centralized water supply systems, settlements are no longer confined to smaller clusters around water bodies. Hence over a period of time due to the demands of urbanisation, development has slowly crept up to the banks of these lakes thereby converting the once sprawling water bodies in to mere water tanks which are prone to degradation through development pressure, eutrophication and solid waste disposal Recently, the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) has taken tremendous efforts to revive the natural resources of the region and improve the environment in totality. One of the initiatives is the Lake Conservation Programme.. The program not only included cleaning and bioremediation of the lakes but also took steps for creating lakes as the hub of economic activity, thereby providing an indirect source of livehood for many people. This...
Words: 3561 - Pages: 15
