Nutrients and not temperature are the key drivers for cyanobacterial biomass in the Americas

Bonilla, Sylvia; Aguilera, Anabella; Aubriot, Luis; Huszar, Vera Lúcia de Moraes; Almanza, Viviana; Haakonsson, Signe; Izaguirre, Irina; O’Farrell, Inés; Salazar-Torres, Anthony; Becker, Vanessa; Cremella, Bruno; Ferragut, Carla; Hernández, Esnedy; Palacio, Hilda; Rodrigues, Luzia Cleide; Silva, Lúcia Helena Sampaio da; Santana, Lucineide Maria; Santos, Juliana B. O.; Somma, Andrea; Ortega, L. A. Castro; Antoniades, Dermot

doi:10.1016/j.hal.2022.102367

Cited by 37 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 90 publications

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“…temperature, rainfall; Fang et al, 2022). In addition, nutrients and not temperature were identified as the key drivers for cyanobacterial biomass in lakes from America (Bonilla et al, 2023).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rise of toxic cyanobacterial blooms is promoted by agricultural intensification in the basin of a large subtropical river of South America

Kruk

Segura²,

Piñeiro

et al. 2023

Global Change Biology

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Toxic cyanobacterial blooms are globally increasing with negative effects on aquatic ecosystems, water use and human health. Blooms' main driving forces are eutrophication, dam construction, urban waste, replacement of natural vegetation with croplands and climate change and variability. The relative effects of each driver have not still been properly addressed, particularly in large river basins. Here, we performed a historical analysis of cyanobacterial abundance in a large and important ecosystem of South America (Uruguay river, ca 1900 km long, 365,000 km2 basin). We evaluated the interannual relationships between cyanobacterial abundance and land use change, river flow, urban sewage, temperature and precipitation from 1963 to the present. Our results indicated an exponential increase in cyanobacterial abundance during the last two decades, congruent with an increase in phosphorus concentration. A sharp shift in the cyanobacterial abundance rate of increase after the year 2000 was identified, resulting in abundance levels above public health alert since 2010. Path analyses showed a strong positive correlation between cyanobacteria and cropland area at the entire catchment level, while precipitation, temperature and water flow effects were negligible. Present results help to identify high nutrient input agricultural practices and nutrient enrichment as the main factors driving toxic bloom formation. These practices are already exerting severe effects on both aquatic ecosystems and human health and projections suggest these trends will be intensified in the future. To avoid further water degradation and health risk for future generations, a large‐scale (transboundary) change in agricultural management towards agroecological practices will be required.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rise of toxic cyanobacterial blooms is promoted by agricultural intensification in the basin of a large subtropical river of South America

Kruk

Segura²,

Piñeiro

et al. 2023

Global Change Biology

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“…In the UK, for example, the economic costs of algal blooms have been estimated to increase by 1.5–1.9 fold in the 2050s (Jones et al, 2020). Observed and projected impacts of climate chance emphasize the need to reduce algal bloom biomass by sufficiently stringent reduction of nutrients (Bonilla et al, 2023; Rigosi et al, 2014).…”

Section: Implementing the Framework Of Sustainable Lake Restorationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainable lake restoration: From challenges to solutions

Tammeorg,

Chorus,

Spears

et al. 2023

WIREs Water

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Sustainable management of lakes requires us to overcome ecological, economic, and social challenges. These challenges can be addressed by focusing on achieving ecological improvement within a multifaceted, co‐beneficial context. In‐lake restoration measures may promote more rapid ecosystem responses than is feasible with catchment measures alone, even if multiple interventions are needed. In particular, we identify restoration methods that support the overarching societal target of a circular economy through the use of nutrients, sediments, or biomass that are removed from a lake, in agriculture, as food, or for biogas production. In this emerging field of sustainable restoration techniques, we show examples, discuss benefits and pitfalls, and flag areas for further research and development. Each lake should be assessed individually to ensure that restoration approaches will effectively address lake‐specific problems, do not harm the target lake or downstream ecosystems, are cost‐effective, promote delivery of valuable ecosystem services, minimize conflicts in public interests, and eliminate the necessity for repeated interventions. Achieving optimal, sustainable results from lake restoration relies on multidisciplinary research and close interactions between environmental, social, political, and economic sectors.This article is categorized under: Science of Water > Water Quality Water and Life > Stresses and Pressures on Ecosystems Water and Life > Conservation, Management, and Awareness

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“…Eutrophication is a significant threat to lakes and lagoons worldwide and is a global concern that is severely deteriorating aquatic ecosystems [1]. Nutrient excess is considered as the key factor for eutrophication [2][3][4], specifically nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) excess [5], from land sources such as agricultural and livestock practices and also urban discharges [6]. Excessive N and P loads to lakes and lagoons enrich the water [7], producing an increase in the plant growth, including algal bloom in the upper layers and an algae biological decomposition in deep water that reduces the oxygen content to hypoxic or anoxic conditions, finally producing heavy mortalities due to the lack of oxygen [1,[8][9][10].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Algal growth depends on various factors, including irradiance, temperature, nutrient enrichment, species interaction, salinity, and hydrodynamics [1,[11][12][13]. In some cases, Water 2023, 15, 3569 2 of 16 nutrients are the key factor for algal growth [2]. Adequate irradiance (light availability) and water temperature are essential prerequisites for maintaining the photosynthetic and survival rates of algal blooms.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding Nutrient Loads from Catchment and Eutrophication in a Salt Lagoon: The Mar Menor Case

Pérez-Martín

2023

Water

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Eutrophication is a significant threat to aquatic ecosystems worldwide, and the Mar Menor hypersaline lagoon exemplifies a coastal lagoon at risk of algal blooms due to excessive nutrient loads, nitrogen, and phosphorus. These nutrients originate from various sources within the lagoon’s catchment area, including urban, agricultural, and livestock activities. Regular and occasional loads—during flood events—produce algal blooms that can significantly reduce the water oxygen content and cause massive mortalities, as observed in recent years. A daily algal growth model (Mmag) was developed to better understand the processes and determine key elements such as the phosphorus water–sediment interchange and deep water plants that effect the entire ecosystem and algal growth. The analysis developed can be applied in other wetlands around the world facing similar challenges. In the Mar Menor, both nitrogen and phosphorus have high relevance depending on the period of the year and the phosphorus legacy in the sediments. Floods are the main phosphorus input to the lagoon (80–90%), which goes to the sediment and is released after during the warm months in the following years. At the end of summer, phosphorus released from the sediment and the regular nitrate inputs to the lagoon increase the algal bloom risk. The good status of deep water plants, which reduces the phosphorus release in summer, is a key element to reduce the algal bloom risk. An integrated set of measures is required to reduce the mean chlorophyll to levels under 1 or 0.5 µgChla/L that can make the Mar Menor more robust and resilient.

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Nutrients and not temperature are the key drivers for cyanobacterial biomass in the Americas

Cited by 37 publications

References 90 publications

Rise of toxic cyanobacterial blooms is promoted by agricultural intensification in the basin of a large subtropical river of South America

Rise of toxic cyanobacterial blooms is promoted by agricultural intensification in the basin of a large subtropical river of South America

Sustainable lake restoration: From challenges to solutions

Understanding Nutrient Loads from Catchment and Eutrophication in a Salt Lagoon: The Mar Menor Case

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