Ecosystem-level effects of re-oligotrophication and N:P imbalances in rivers and estuaries on a global scale.

ABSTRACT: Trends and ecological consequences of phosphorus (P) decline and increasing nitrogen (N) to phosphorus (N:P) ratios in rivers and estuaries are reviewed and discussed. Results suggest that re-oligotrophication is a dominant trend in rivers and estuaries of high-income countries in the last two-three decades, while in low-income countries widespread eutrophication occurs. The decline in P is well documented in hundreds of rivers of United States and the European Union, but the biotic response of rivers and estuaries besides phytoplankton decline such as trends in phytoplankton composition, changes in primary production, ecosystem shifts, cascading effects, changes in ecosystem metabolism, etc., have not been sufficiently monitored and investigated, neither the effects of N:P imbalance. N:P

SUBMITTER: Ibanez C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10107953 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature