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TitleNovel method to predict hypoxia in shallow, complex archipelagoes
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LicencePlease note the adoption of the Open Government Licence - Canada supersedes any previous licences.
AuthorVirtanen, E; Norkko, A; Viitasalo, M
SourceProgram and abstracts: 2017 GeoHab Conference, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada; by Todd, B JORCID logo; Brown, C J; Lacharité, M; Gazzola, V; McCormack, E; Geological Survey of Canada, Open File 8295, 2017 p. 118, https://doi.org/10.4095/305939 Open Access logo Open Access
LinksGeoHab 2017
Year2017
PublisherNatural Resources Canada
Meeting2017 GeoHab: Marine Geological and Biological Habitat Mapping; Dartmouth, NS; CA; May 1-4, 2017
Documentopen file
Lang.English
Mediaon-line; digital
RelatedThis publication is contained in Program and abstracts: 2017 GeoHab Conference, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada
File formatpdf
Subjectsmarine geology; surficial geology/geomorphology; environmental geology; geophysics; engineering geology; mapping techniques; oceanography; marine environments; coastal studies; conservation; marine organisms; marine ecology; resource management; biological communities; environmental studies; ecosystems; benthos; oxygen; seafloor topography; modelling; Biology; mitigation
ProgramOffshore Geoscience
Released2017 09 26
AbstractHypoxia is a common phenomenon in marine areas characterized by strong water stratification and high organic production. These conditions are common in archipelagoes and estuaries around the world, especially in semi-enclosed marine areas, such as the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea.
In complex archipelagoes, restricted water exchange is one of the main reasons for hypoxia. We tested if hypoxia can be predicted through a limited number of simple topographical features in the marine landscape. We modelled the potential for hypoxic bottoms and hypoxic-prone areas in the northern Baltic Sea, in a complex Finnish archipelago. Hypoxia was largely explained by enclosed topography and limited wave-force.
The modelling results show that large part of the variation of oxygen can be predicted without any knowledge of oceanographic parameters, temperature development, nutrient loading, biological communities, or biogeochemical processes in the sediment. Our model was validated with benthos samples with good results, matching with areas with poor bottom-fauna diversity. Our approach shows that areas prone to hypoxia can be identified by using simple topographic information. The method can also be used to assess where hypoxia is naturally occurring and where it is human-induced, and the potential for occurring in the future if environment resulting in hypoxia changes. Information can be used for deciding where eutrophication mitigation actions should be placed in a cost-effective way.
Summary(Plain Language Summary, not published)
The sixteenth annual GeoHab Conference was held this year (2017) at the Waterfront Campus of the Nova Scotia Community College in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada.
GEOSCAN ID305939

 
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