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THE GROUND WATER FLUX OF NITROGEN AND PHOSPHORUS TO BERMUDA'S COASTAL WATERS 1
Author(s) -
Simmons J. A. Kent.,
Lyons W. Berry.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
jawra journal of the american water resources association
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.957
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1752-1688
pISSN - 1093-474X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1752-1688.1994.tb03346.x
Subject(s) - environmental science , nutrient , flux (metallurgy) , shore , phosphorus , groundwater , nitrogen , oceanography , hydrology (agriculture) , sewage , water mass , eutrophication , environmental engineering , ecology , chemistry , geology , biology , geotechnical engineering , organic chemistry
The concentrations of dissolved fixed inorganic nitrogen (ΣN) in Bermuda ground waters can be very high due to both natural and anthropogenic processes. The high anthropogenic flux is due to domestic cesspit operation. Mass balance calculations indicate that ground water seepage, especially rich in ΣN, is a major source of nutrients into the near shore coastal zone of Bermuda. The ground water flux of ΣN is approximately 1.5 to 4 times that of the sewage flux of ΣN to Bermuda's nearshore waters. This input of ΣN may be important in the development of algal blooms in these waters. Our work, coupled with other recent investigations, suggests that the ground water input of nutrients into nearshore marine waters is an important process globally.