Sub: Biology Topic: Ecology

Question:
High levels of nutrients moving into the estuary have been linked to Pfiesteria outbreaks. What
nutrient sources might contribute to this problem?

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You should be able to list several potential nutrient sources.

Solution:

Possible Nutrient sources contributing to Pfiesteria outbreaks:

Possible Nutrient sources contributing to Pfiesteria outbreaks are

(i) Sewage treatment plants
(ii) Fertilizer runoff
Fertilizers applied on home gardens and golf courses, auto emissions of nitrogen, and industries
that refine oil or burn coal can also contribute.
(iii) Chicken manure
Run-off can be traced in part to high-density livestock raising operations. For example, in the
tidewater areas of Maryland, Delaware and Virginia (known as the Del-Mar-Va peninsula), farmers raise
600 million chickens,

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 Sub: Biology Topic: Ecology

with about 24 pounds of waste per bird. Although many operators are diligent about waste control, too
much nitrogen leaves the land and ends up in the water, creating an environment where Pfiesteria can
thrive.
(iv) Hog manure
In North Carolina, industrial-sized hog farms may pose the same problem. North Carolina's hog
population is approaching 10 million.
(v) Pig Manure
And in 1995, 25 million gallons of pig manure -- more than twice the volume of the Exxon
Valdez spill -- burst from a ruptured manure-storage facility into the New River.
(vi) Phosphate mines
(vii) Municipal wastewater treatment plants
(viii) Phosphorous and nitrogen richness from effluents
Pfiesteria seems to favor waters high in "nutrients" (nitrogen, phosphorus),
but outbreaks aren't necessarily imminent in water-bodies with high nutrient levels.

(ix) Polluted run-off

Polluted run-off a scourge that affects many of our nation's waterways – comes from many
sources.
(x) Microbe and Weather
Microbe usually grows in warmer waters, outbreaks have occurred in October and November,
in cooler weather. " Activation" of the microbe often takes place in shallow water with poor
circulation and with high concentrations of fish. However, "activation" has occurred in other
water environments, too.
** End of the Solution **
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