Evidence of Anthropogenic Nitrogen Enrichment of the Littoral Waters of East Central Florida

Barile, Peter J.

doi:10.2112/04-0212.1

Cited by 62 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…This suggests a connection between urban development of coastal landscapes and the appearance of macroalgal blooms. This coupling is mediated by the transport of nitrogen from land to receiving estuaries, as has been shown by mass balance and stable isotopic evidence for Waquoit Bay (Valiela et al 1997a;2004;McClelland and Valiela 1998;Martinetto et al 2006). …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 82%

“…and Gracilaria spp. are common macroalgae that have been shown to proliferate in response to increased anthropogenic nutrient inputs to coastal waters worldwide Fox et al 9 (Baden et al 1990;Lavery et al 1991;Barile 2004). It is therefore not surprising to find these taxa blooming in sites where nutrient loads are high, such as Childs and Quashnet rivers.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Macrophyte Abundance in Waquoit Bay: Effects of Land-Derived Nitrogen Loads on Seasonal and Multi-Year Biomass Patterns

Fox

Stieve

Valiela

et al. 2008

Estuaries and Coasts

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Anthropogenic inputs of nutrients to coastal waters have rapidly restructured coastal ecosystems.To examine the response of macrophyte communities to land-derived nitrogen loading, we measured macrophyte biomass monthly for six years in three estuaries subject to different nitrogen loads owing to different land uses on the watersheds. The set of estuaries sampled had nitrogen loads over the broad range of 12 to 601 kg N ha -1 y -1 . Macrophyte biomass increased as nitrogen loads increased, but the response of individual taxa varied. Specifically, biomass of Cladophora vagabunda and Gracilaria tikvahiae increased significantly as nitrogen loads increased. The biomass of other macroalgal taxa tended to decrease with increasing load, and the relative proportion of these taxa to total macrophyte biomass also decreased. The seagrass, Zostera marina, disappeared from the higher loaded estuaries, but remained abundant in the estuary with the lowest load. Seasonal changes in macroalgal standing stock were also affected by nitrogen load, with larger fluctuations in biomass across the year and higher minimum biomass of macroalgae in the higher loaded estuaries. There were no significant changes in macrophyte biomass over the six years of this study, but there was a slight trend of increasing macroalgal biomass in the latter years. Macroalgal biomass was not related to irradiance or temperature, but Z. marina biomass was highest during the summer months when light and temperatures peak. Irradiance might, however, be a secondary limiting factor controlling macroalgal biomass in the higher loaded estuaries by restricting the depth of the macroalgal canopy. The relationship between the bloom-forming macroalgal species, C. vagabunda and G. tikvahiae, and nitrogen loads suggested a strong connection between development on watersheds and macroalgal blooms and loss of seagrasses. The influence of watershed land uses largely Fox et al. 3 overwhelmed seasonal and inter-annual differences in standing stock of macrophytes in these temperate estuaries.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 82%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Macrophyte Abundance in Waquoit Bay: Effects of Land-Derived Nitrogen Loads on Seasonal and Multi-Year Biomass Patterns

Fox

Stieve

Valiela

et al. 2008

Estuaries and Coasts

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“…During seasonal upwelling events along the southeast coast of Florida, cool water from the depths of the Straits and the Gulf Stream north of the Straits flows upward and onto the shelf (Figure 3). In the summer of 1978, an upwelling event began in mid June and continued until early September in the vicinity of Ft. Pierce, Florida (Smith, 1981;1982b), which is located approximately midway between the site of this study and the study conducted by Barile (2004). Similar events of varying duration have been recorded in response to Hurricane David in September 1979 (Smith, 1982a) and in the summer of 1980 (Smith, 1983).…”

Section: Mechanisms Of Subsurface Discharge and Distributionmentioning

confidence: 53%

“…No large-scale monitoring in surface waters is conducted to determine the locations and extent of nutrient loading associated with predominantly non-saline domestic wastewater injected into aquifer zones of higher salinities because of the unsupported presumptions that aquifer-injected wastewater and other fluids don't discharge contaminants to surface waters, such as the near-shore coastal waters in southeast Florida, where coral reefs and federally threatened and endangered species once thrived. These HABs have been increasing in frequency and intensity in south Florida surface waters, with neurotoxins and expanses of benthic macroalgae becoming serious forms of HAB in south Florida (Barile, 2004;Brand & Compton, 2007;Brand, Pablo, Compton, Hammerschlag, & Mash, 2010;Lapointe & Barile, 2001). Benthic macroalgae are more difficult to detect and track from the surface than planktonic blooms, such as Florida's red-tide events.…”

Section: Background Of Aquifer Injection Wells and Submarine Groundwamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Individual samples for analysis of δ 15 N in benthic macroalgae consisted of pooled algae from three individuals of a single species, for each species present at that site (Site n). Analysis of δ 15 N in benthic macroalgal samples was as described by Barile (2004). Methodology to determine chl-a levels in surfacewater samples was described by Brand (2002).…”

Section: Environmental Samplesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Benthic Macroalgal Blooms as Indicators of Nutrient Loading from Aquifer-Injected Sewage Effluent in Environmentally Sensitive Near-Shore Waters Associated with the South Florida Keys

Bacchus¹,

Bernardes²,

Jordan³

et al. 2014

JGG

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Domestic wastewater is injected into Florida's permeable aquifer system via Class I and Class V wells theoretically to avoid nutrient loading and other contamination that occurs when domestic wastewater is discharged directly to surface waters, resulting in nutrient loading and harmful algal blooms (HABs). The majority of Class I aquifer-injection wells are used to inject secondary-treated effluent from domestic wastewater treatment plants. Class V aquifer-injection wells also include injection of domestic wastewater. As of July 28, 2014, 257 Class I aquifer-injection wells and 14,466 Class V aquifer-injection wells had been permitted in Florida by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP), with 34 Class I wells and 10,671 Class V wells located in the Florida Keys, Monroe County and Miami-Dade County, in southeast Florida. The presumption is that the injected wastewater will be contained within the aquifer zone where the injection is permitted and not move into overlying aquifer zones or surface waters. No large-scale monitoring in surface waters is conducted to confirm that the predominantly non-saline domestic wastewater injected into aquifer zones of higher salinities is not discharging to surface waters, such as the near-shore coastal waters in southeast Florida that provide habitat for coral reefs and federally threatened and endangered species, such as sea turtles and manatees. As an example of how such monitoring could be conducted, a case study was initiated in the coastal waters of the Florida Keys to evaluate the hypothesis that: 1) deep-aquifer (Floridan) discharges occur in localized areas of environmental decline and 2) dense benthic macroalgae associated with submarine groundwater discharges (SGD) in those localized areas, exhibit stable nitrogen isotope ratios (δ 15 Ν) indicative of sewage effluent. Sites were selected in near-shore (continental shelf) surface waters in Biscayne Bay (vicinity of Black Point deep-aquifer sewage-effluent injection facility); Card Sound/Barnes Sound; Florida Bay (Everglades National Park); and Florida Keys ocean side (vicinity of >1000 primarily shallow-aquifer Class V injection wells). Dissolved helium (He) anomalies in surface waters were used as tracers of groundwater origin. Excesses of 4 He indicate deep-aquifer discharges. Greatest 4 He excesses were in the Marquesas Keys, where localized coral decline and dense benthic macroalgae occurred, and north Florida Bay, where seagrass dieoff occurred in 1987. Benthic macroalgal samples from sites with dense macroalgal growth and localized coral decline had δ 15 Ν ratios indicative of sewage: 1) where sewage effluent disposal was concentrated in aquifer-injection wells, and 2) in the Marquesas Keys, ~40 km from the nearest shallow-aquifer injection wells, septic tanks, and cess pits. Surfacewater signatures indicative of aquifer-injection zones reconfirm breached (leaky) aquifer confinement and ocean-side Floridan-aquifer discharges for the Keys. Remote sites with deep-aquifer signatures, ext...

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Harmful Macroalgal Blooms in a Changing World: Causes, Impacts, and Management

Lapointe

Burkholder

Alstyne

2018

Harmful Algal Blooms

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Evidence of Anthropogenic Nitrogen Enrichment of the Littoral Waters of East Central Florida

Cited by 62 publications

References 30 publications

Macrophyte Abundance in Waquoit Bay: Effects of Land-Derived Nitrogen Loads on Seasonal and Multi-Year Biomass Patterns

Macrophyte Abundance in Waquoit Bay: Effects of Land-Derived Nitrogen Loads on Seasonal and Multi-Year Biomass Patterns

Benthic Macroalgal Blooms as Indicators of Nutrient Loading from Aquifer-Injected Sewage Effluent in Environmentally Sensitive Near-Shore Waters Associated with the South Florida Keys

Harmful Macroalgal Blooms in a Changing World: Causes, Impacts, and Management

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