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Eutrophication is a general term describing a process in which nutrients accumulate in a body of water, resulting in an increased growth of organisms that may deplete the oxygen in the water. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] Eutrophication may occur naturally or as a result of human actions.
Phosphorus can encourage excessive growths of plants and algae and contribute to eutrophication. If a river discharges into a lake or reservoir phosphate can be mobilised year after year by natural processes. In the summer time, lakes stratify so that warm oxygen rich water floats on top of cold oxygen poor water.
Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of water bodies, with a negative impact on their uses. [1]: 6 It is usually a result of human activities. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and groundwater. Water pollution results when contaminants mix with these water bodies. Contaminants can come from ...
A eutrophic water body, commonly a lake or pond, has high biological productivity. Due to excessive nutrients, especially nitrogen and phosphorus, these water bodies are able to support an abundance of aquatic plants. Usually, the water body will be dominated either by aquatic plants or algae. When aquatic plants dominate, the water tends to be ...
Cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) bloom on Lake Erie (United States) in 2009. These kinds of algae can cause harmful algal bloom. A harmful algal bloom (HAB), or excessive algae growth, sometimes called a red tide in marine environments, is an algal bloom that causes negative impacts to other organisms by production of natural algae-produced toxins, water deoxygenation, mechanical damage to ...
There are many factors that contribute to low water security. Some examples are: [7]: 4 [6]: 9 Water scarcity: Water demand exceeds supply in many regions of the world. This can be due to population growth, higher living standards, general economic expansion and/or greater quantities of water used in agriculture for irrigation.
Nutrient pollution, a form of water pollution, refers to contamination by excessive inputs of nutrients.It is a primary cause of eutrophication of surface waters (lakes, rivers and coastal waters), in which excess nutrients, usually nitrogen or phosphorus, stimulate algal growth. [1]
Hypoxia can occur throughout the water column and also at high altitudes as well as near sediments on the bottom. It usually extends throughout 20–50% of the water column, but depends on the water depth and location of pycnoclines (rapid changes in water density with depth). It can occur in 10–80% of the water column.