BIS 2B Lecture Notes - Lecture 24: Denitrification, Eutrophication, Water Scarcity

• School: UC-Davis
• Department: Biological Sciences
• Course: BIS 2B
• Professor: Mark Schwartz; Sharon Strauss

Document Summary

N and p increase primary productivity and cause bottom up ecosystems that are unfavorable to highly diverse ecosystems. 1 kg oh p can result in hundreds of kgs of algal growth. Causes: changes in surface water quality, ocean dead zones, limits freshwater productivity. Natural sources: weathering of rocks; artificial: mining, fertilizers. No gaseous phase, becomes available by slow weathering of rocks. Small amount can fuel a lot of plant and animal growth. Systems are limited by amount of p in system. Dust flow from asia supplies hawaiian islands with p. P binds tightly to clay on land and is in short supply in water. Organic forms available to plants: ammonia, ammonium, nitrite, nitrate. Fewer forms available to animals in form of plant proteins. Low concentration of n in saltwater, much lower than freshwater. Soil n is loosely bound and easily leached out, easily washed into lakes and rivers.