"Coastal Nutrient Over-Enrichment: A Pressing 21st Century Problem"
Lecture by Dr. John Harrison
Humans have greatly altered global nutrient cycles, increasing the rates at which biologically active compounds are added to surface freshwaters and coastal environments. This increased nutrient loading has been associated with a number of adverse environmental consequences, including the increased frequency and severity of low-oxygen zones known as “dead zones,” increased frequency and severity of toxic and nuisance algae blooms, and the loss of biodiversity, among others.
Dr. Harrison and his research group use observational, experimental and modeling approaches to investigate current patterns of nutrient delivery to aquatic ecosystems as well as the factors controlling that delivery and potential future trajectories of change. Dr. Harrison, an Assistant Professor in the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, will discuss some of these recent efforts to quantify current and future human impacts on nutrient transport to coastal environments.