Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Eutrophication in the Coastal Marine Environment

Ryther, John H.; Dunstan, William M.

doi:10.1126/science.171.3975.1008

Cited by 1,654 publications

(690 citation statements)

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“…The concentration of PO 4 -P also played an important role. Generally, phosphorus is the critical limiting factor in the freshwater ecosystem [17], whereas nitrogen tends to be the critical factor in the marine environment [14].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Plankton Community Succession in Artificial Systems Subjected to Cyanobacterial Blooms Removal using Chitosan-Modified Soils

Yan

Feng

et al. 2008

Microb Ecol

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Using artificial systems to simulate natural lake environments with cyanobacterial blooms, we investigated plankton community succession by polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) fingerprinting and morphological method. With this approach, we explored potential ecological effects of a newly developed cyanobacterial blooms removal method using chitosan-modified soils. Results of PCR-DGGE and morphological identification showed that plankton communities in the four test systems were nearly identical at the beginning of the experiment. After applying the newly developed and standard removal methods, there was a shift in community composition, but neither chemical conditions nor plankton succession were significantly affected by the cyanobacteria removal process. The planted Vallisneria natans successfully recovered after cyanobacteria removal, whereas that in the box without removal process did not. Additionally, canonical correspondence analysis indicated that other than for zooplankton abundance, total phosphorus was the most important environmental predictor of planktonic composition. The present study and others suggest that dealing with cyanobacteria removal using chitosan-modified soils can play an important role in controlling cyanobacterial blooms in eutrophicated freshwater systems.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Plankton Community Succession in Artificial Systems Subjected to Cyanobacterial Blooms Removal using Chitosan-Modified Soils

Yan

Feng

et al. 2008

Microb Ecol

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“…Only one other paper in the 1972 special issue suggests that N may ever limit production in an aquatic ecosystem, and it argued for co-limitation of P and N in an oligotrophic lake (Fuhs et al 1972). Curiously, no papers in the special issue reference the work of Ryther (1954) and Ryther and Dunstan (1971) on N control of eutrophication in coastal marine ecosystems.…”

Section: Acknowledgmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nitrogen as the limiting nutrient for eutrophication in coastal marine ecosystems: Evolving views over three decades

Howarth

Marino

2006

Limnology & Oceanography

1,194

733

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The first special volume of Limnology and Oceanography, published in 1972, focused on whether phosphorus (P) or carbon (C) is the major agent causing eutrophication in aquatic ecosystems. Only slight mention was made that estuaries may behave differently from lakes and that nitrogen (N) may cause eutrophication in estuaries. In the following decade, an understanding of eutrophication in estuaries proceeded in relative isolation from the community of scientists studying lakes. National water quality policy in the United States was directed almost solely toward P control for both lakes and estuaries, and similarly, European nations tended to focus on P control in lakes. Although bioassay data indicated N control of eutrophication in estuaries as early as the 1970s, this body of knowledge was treated with skepticism by many freshwater scientists and water-quality managers, because bioassay data in lakes often did not properly indicate the importance of P relative to C in those ecosystems. Hence, the bioassay data in estuaries had little influence on water-quality management. Over the past two decades, a strong consensus has evolved among the scientific community that N is the primary cause of eutrophication in many coastal ecosystems. The development of this consensus was based in part on data from whole-ecosystem studies and on a growing body of evidence that presented convincing mechanistic reasons why the controls of eutrophication in lakes and coastal marine ecosystems may differ. Even though N is probably the major cause of eutrophication in most coastal systems in the temperate zone, optimal management of coastal eutrophication suggests controlling both N and P, in part because P can limit primary production in some systems. In addition, excess P in estuaries can interact with the availability of N and silica (Si) to adversely affect ecological structure. Reduction of P to upstream freshwater ecosystems can also benefit coastal marine ecosystems through mechanisms such as increased Si fluxes.

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“…Nitrogen is a major nutrient that controls primary productivity in many coastal waters, and atmospheric deposition is an important non-point source of both organic and inorganic nitrogen (Ryther and Dunstan, 1971;Vitousek and Howarth, 1991;Nixon, 1995;Paerl, 1995;Paerl and Whitall, 1999;Seitzinger and Sanders, 1999;Rabalais, 2002;Driscoll et al, 2003;Galloway et al, 2003). Excessive fluxes of nitrogen from atmospheric sources result in the eutrophication of many coastal waters in the United States, which is now considered the most widespread water quality problem (Nixon, 1995;Carpenter et al, 1998 (Psuty et al, 1993;Zampella et al, 2001).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%