from The Open University
Alternatively you can skip the navigation by pressing 'Enter'.
Managing eutrophication is a key element in maintaining the earth's biodiversity....
Managing eutrophication is a key element in maintaining the earth's biodiversity. Eutrophication is a process mostly associated with human activity whereby ecosystems accumulate minerals. This unit explains how this process occurs, what its effects on different types of habitat are, and how it might be managed.
By the end of this unit you should be able to:
- Describe the principal differences between a eutrophic and an oligotrophic ecosystem.
- Explain the mechanisms by which species diversity is reduced as a result of eutrophication. (Questions 2.1 and 2.2)
- Contrast the anthropogenic sources that supply nitrogen and phosphorus to the wider environment, and describe how these sources can be controlled. (Question 3.1)
- Describe how living organisms can be used as monitors of the trophic status of ecosystems. (Question 4.1)
- Compare the advantages and disadvantages of three different methods for combating anthropogenic eutrophication. (Question 4.2)
- Learning outcomes
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Effects of eutrophication
- 2.1 Effects on primary producers in freshwater ecosystems
- 2.2 Effects on consumers in freshwater ecosystems
- 2.3 Effects on terrestrial vegetation
- 2.4 Effects on marine systems
- 2.4.1 Estuarine species
- Current section: 2.4.2 Saltmarshes
- 3 Causes and mechanisms of eutrophication
- 4 Managing eutrophication
- 4.1 Measuring and monitoring eutrophication
- 4.2 Reducing eutrophication
- 4.3 Reducing the nutrient source
- 4.3 Reducing the nutrient source, continued
- 4.4 Reducing nutrient availability
- 5 Summary
Marsh plant primary production is generally nitrogen limited, so saltmarsh vegetation responds readily to the artificial eutrophication that is now so common in nearshore waters. Eutrophication causes marked changes in plant communities in saltmarshes, just as it does in freshwater aquatic and terrestrial systems. Biomass production increases markedly as levels of eutrophication increase. Increases in the nitrogen content of plants cause dramatic changes in populations of marsh plant consumers: insect herbivores tend to increase (Figure 2.23) and so do numbers of carnivorous insects. Thus, increasing the nitrogen supply to saltmarshes has a dramatic bottom-up effect on marsh food webs. Eutrophication can also alter the outcome of competition among marsh plants, by changing the factor limiting growth. At low levels of nitrogen, plants that exploit below-ground resources most effectively, such as the saltmarsh rush (Juncus gerardii) are competitively dominant, but at higher nutrient levels dominance switches to plants that are good above-ground competitors, such as the common cord grass (Spartina anglica, Figure 2.24). In other words, as nitrogen availability increases, competition for light becomes relatively more important.
This is an extract from an Open University course which is no longer available to new students. If you found this interesting you could explore more free Environmental Science course units or view the range of currently available OU Environmental Science courses.