HR: 16:30h
AN: H14B-05 INVITED     [Abstracts]
TI: Nutrient Enrichment of Coastal Receiving Waters from Catchments Across the USA
AU: * Boyer, E W
EM: boyer@nature.berkeley.edu
AF: University of California, Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management 137 Mulford Hall # 3114, Berkeley, CA 94720 United States
AU: Bricker, S B
EM: Suzanne.Bricker@noaa.g
AF: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Ocean Service 1305 East West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910 United States
AU: Smith, R A
EM: rsmith1@usgs.gov
AF: US Geological Survey, 413 National Center 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, VA 20192 United States
AU: Alexander, R B
EM: ralex@usgs.gov
AF: US Geological Survey, 413 National Center 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, VA 20192 United States
AU: Schwarz, G B
EM: gschwarz@usgs.gov
AF: US Geological Survey, 413 National Center 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, VA 20192 United States
AB: Though the abundant supply of reactive nutrients to the landscape provides many benefits to society in terms of food and energy production, the environmental consequences of nutrient over-enrichment are severe, particularly in the coastal zone. We assess eutrophication of surface waters, considered to be the most widespread water quality problem in the USA. We highlight hot spots of mass loadings of nutrients to coastal receiving waters based on results from several spatially referenced regression models applied at the national scale. We explore inter-annual variability and long-term trends of nutrient delivery from several key catchments to sensitive estuaries based on long-term monitoring data. We assess the coastal response and ecological effects resulting from these nutrient loads, considering differences such as the physicochemical characteristics and hydrological residence times of estuaries. Further, we discuss the need to understand precursor source of nitrogen to receiving waters. For example, recent research on algal blooms in both the east and west coasts of the US shows that the growth of toxic and harmful algae is stimulated specifically by urea, an organic nitrogen compound dominant in nitrogen inputs from agricultural and urban runoff, over inorganic nitrogen sources such as ammonium and nitrate that are dominant in nitrogen inputs from atmospheric deposition.
DE: 1803 Anthropogenic effects
DE: 1806 Chemistry of fresh water
DE: 1871 Surface water quality
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: 2005 Joint Assembly