Monitoring data compilations can be leveraged to highlight relationships between estuarine and watershed factors influencing eutrophication in estuaries.

ABSTRACT: Estuaries have been adversely impacted by increased nutrient loads. Eutrophication impacts from these loads include excess algal blooms and low oxygen conditions. In this study, we leveraged data from 28 monitoring programs in the northeastern US to explore the relationships between eutrophication response variables and watershed and estuarine variables. Extensive effort was needed to locate, harmonize, and assure the quality of the data. Random forest regression allowed us to identify the most important variables that could predict summer total nitrogen (TN), chlorophyll (chl), and bottom dissolved oxygen (DO). Several different summaries of the data were assessed. The best models for TN and chl used data summarized by estuary and year, explaining > 70% and > 60% of the variation, respect

SUBMITTER: Pelletier MC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11753031 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature