EUTROPHICATION

NO NAME MATRIC CARD

1 AIDA ‘IZZATI BT ZAINALABIDIN 06DKA11F1067

2 HAZNIE AMIELYA BT HAZLAN 06DKA11F1077

3 NURUL SYUHAIDA BT MOHAMED 06DKA11F1071

4 NOOR HAFIZ B. NOOR AZMAN 06DKA11F1069

 WHAT IS EUTROPHICATION ?

o Eutrophication is a process by which an excess of

nitrates can kill of populations of water-based
organisms.
o This is due to the build up in nitrates increasing
the population sizes of some plants in the water
through increased fertility.
o When these plants die, there is an excess of
organic dead matter.
o This dead matter is then used by bacteria in
aerobic respiration, allowing the bacteria to
absorb more oxygen from the water.
WHY EUTROPHICATION HAPPENING ?
o This problem occurs when farmers use
artificial chemical fertilizers on their land.

o These fertilizers contain large amount of

potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen.
• The nitrogen which cause all the
problems, in the form of nitrates.

• An excess of these will be washed out

from the fields by the rain in a process
called “run-off”, where the nitrates
accumulate in nearby rivers and ponds.

• This then links back to the original slide

where the water plant population
increase.
 HOW DOES THAT AFFECT OTHER
ORGANISMS ?
o With more oxygen being absorbed by the bacteria, there is
less available for larger organisms which don’t have the
necessary adaption to cope with lower oxygen levels.

o These organisms, often fish, can then no longer respire

aerobically and will die.

o This affect the whole cycle exponentially, as there is now

more dead matter, and more bacteria respiring aerobically,
causing the O2 levels to decrease furthur, and more fish to
die.
 CAUSES OF EUTROPHICATION

• increase in plant and animal biomass

• increase in growth of rooted plants, e.g. reeds

• increase in turbidity (cloudiness) of water

• increase in rate of sedimentation

• development of anoxic conditions (low oxygen

levels)

• decrease in species diversity

• change in dominant biota (e.g. carp replace trout

and blue-green algae replace normal algae) and an

• increase in the frequency of algal blooms.

 WHY SHOULD BE CONCERNED

• Human activities can greatly accelerate eutrophication

by increasing the rate at which nutrients and organic
substances enter aquatic ecosystems from their
surrounding watersheds.
• Agricultural runoff, urban runoff, leaking septic
systems, sewage discharges, eroded stream banks,
and similar sources can increase the flow of
nutrients and organic substances into aquatic
systems.

• These substances can over stimulate the growth of

algae, creating conditions that interfere with the
recreational use of lakes and estuaries, and the
health and diversity of indigenous fish, plant, and
animal populations.
 EFFECT OF EUTROPHICATION

• natural run-off of nutrients from the soil and the

weathering of rocks

• run-off of inorganic fertiliser (containing nitrates and

phosphates)

• run-off of manure from farms (containing nitrates,

phosphates and ammonia)
• run-off from erosion (following mining, construction
work or poor land use)

• discharge of detergents (containing phosphates)

• discharge of partially treated or untreated sewage

(containing nitrates and phosphates)
 HOW CAN THE PROBLEM BE OVERCOME ?
o The magnitude of the problem can be decrease by
a number of factors.

o These include not overly fertilizing fields, using an

organic fertilizer, and not releasing raw sewage into
rivers and lakes.

o A reduction in fertilizer usage would leave the land

with less excess nitrates going to waste and causing
eutrophication.