Academy of Sciences of the United States of America,
95, 13048–13051.
Turner, R. E., Rabalais, N. N., and Justić, D., 2006. Predicting summer hypoxia in the northern Gulf of Mexico Riverine N, P, and Si
loading. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 52, 139–148.
Turner, R. E., Rabalais, N. N., and Justić, D., 2008. Gulf of Mexico
hypoxia alternate states and a legacy. Environmental Science and
Technology, 42, 2323–2327.
Vaquer-Sunyer, R., and Duarte, C. M., 2008. Thresholds of hypoxia
for marine biodiversity. Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences of the United States of America, 105, 15452–15457.
Vitousek, P. M., Mooney, H. A., Lubchenco, J., and Melillo, J. M.,
1997. Human domination of earth’s ecosystems. Science,
277, 494–499.
Weissberger, E. J., Coiro, L. L., and Davey, E. W., 2009. Effects of
hypoxia on animal burrow construction and consequent effects
on sediment redox profiles. Journal of Experimental Marine
Biology and Ecology, 371, 60–67.
Zaitsev, Y. P., 1992. Recent changes in the trophic structure of the
Black Sea. Fisheries Oceanography, 1, 180–189.
Zimmerman, A. R., and Canuel, E. A., 2000. A geochemical record
of eutrophication and anoxia in Chesapeake Bay sediments:
anthropogenic influence on organic matter composition. Marine
Chemistry, 69, 117–137.
Cross-references
Climate Change
Dissolved Oxygen
Eutrophication
Nitrogen
Nutrient Dynamics
Nutrients
Oxygen Depletion
Phosphorus
ANTHROPOGENIC IMPACTS
Michael J. Kennish
Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences,
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences,
Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
Definition
Anthropogenic impacts in this volume refer to the adverse
effects of human activities on estuarine environments.
Introduction
Estuaries rank among the most heavily impacted aquatic
ecosystems on earth, being affected by a wide array of
anthropogenic activities both in adjoining coastal watersheds and in the water bodies themselves (Kennish,
2002). Most of these activities can be linked to ongoing
rapid human population growth and development of the
coastal zone. For example, about four billion people live
within 60 km of the world’s coastlines (Kennish, 2002;
Kennish et al., 2008). In the USA, more than 125 million
people now reside in coastal counties nationwide. People
inhabiting low-lying coastal areas are more vulnerable to
sea-level rise, coastal storms and storm surges, inundation
and flooding, and other coastal hazards.
While many people simply prefer to live near the ocean,
others inhabit the coastal zone for economic opportunity
involving tourism, recreational and commercial fisheries,
mariculture, transportation and shipping, domestic and
industrial construction, electric power generation, oil and
gas recovery, and other human activities. Escalating
human settlement has altered land use/land cover in
coastal watersheds, creating impervious surfaces that
facilitate nonpoint-source pollution input to estuaries.
Much of this is coupled to developing infrastructure such
as construction of roadways and bridges, electric utilities,
as well as water, sewer, and gas lines. Other major pollutant
delivery systems are point-source inputs. Some human
activities have physically altered estuarine shorelines and
habitats, impacting biotic communities. Included here are
the construction of bayshore housing, lagoons, bulkheads
and other shore protection features, harbor and marina
development, dredging and dredged material disposal,
wetland reclamation, and channel and inlet stabilization.
Upland modifications (e.g., dams and reservoirs, deforestation and habitat fragmentation, and channelization) can
significantly exacerbate other anthropogenic stresses
leading to greater pressures in estuarine systems. Increasing
freshwater diversions for agriculture and other human
needs, such as in California (USA), can significantly alter
salinity, circulation, and biotic communities in estuaries.
Estuarine impacts
Kennish et al. (2014a) identified 12 major anthropogenic
stressors on estuarine ecosystems. These include (1) eutrophication; (2) sewage and organic wastes; (3) habitat loss
and alteration, shoreline hardening, and erosion; (4) chemical contaminants; (5) human-induced sediment/particulate inputs; (6) overfishing; (7) intensive aquaculture;
(8) introduced/invasive species; (9) human-altered hydrological regimes; (10) climate change; (11) coastal subsidence; and (12) floatables/debris. An additional stressor
of importance is a group of pathogens that can impact
human use of estuaries. According to Kennish and Paerl
(2010), anthropogenic stressors can be categorized into
those that degrade water quality and are primarily chemical and biological in nature (e.g., nutrient enrichment,
chemical contaminants, and pathogens), impact habitat
and are mainly physical factors (e.g., shoreline hardening,
lagoon construction, dredging and dredged-material disposal), and alter biotic communities and are effectively
driven by multiple stressors (e.g., overfishing, introduced/invasive species, human-altered hydrological
regimes, and climate change).
Eutrophication
Nutrient enrichment, notably nitrogen and phosphorus,
has led the eutrophication of many estuaries, particularly
shallow systems with long water residence times
(Kennish and de Jonge, 2011). Reactive nitrogen inputs
ANTHROPOGENIC IMPACTS
29
95, 13048–13051.
Turner, R. E., Rabalais, N. N., and Justić, D., 2006. Predicting summer hypoxia in the northern Gulf of Mexico Riverine N, P, and Si
loading. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 52, 139–148.
Turner, R. E., Rabalais, N. N., and Justić, D., 2008. Gulf of Mexico
hypoxia alternate states and a legacy. Environmental Science and
Technology, 42, 2323–2327.
Vaquer-Sunyer, R., and Duarte, C. M., 2008. Thresholds of hypoxia
for marine biodiversity. Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences of the United States of America, 105, 15452–15457.
Vitousek, P. M., Mooney, H. A., Lubchenco, J., and Melillo, J. M.,
1997. Human domination of earth’s ecosystems. Science,
277, 494–499.
Weissberger, E. J., Coiro, L. L., and Davey, E. W., 2009. Effects of
hypoxia on animal burrow construction and consequent effects
on sediment redox profiles. Journal of Experimental Marine
Biology and Ecology, 371, 60–67.
Zaitsev, Y. P., 1992. Recent changes in the trophic structure of the
Black Sea. Fisheries Oceanography, 1, 180–189.
Zimmerman, A. R., and Canuel, E. A., 2000. A geochemical record
of eutrophication and anoxia in Chesapeake Bay sediments:
anthropogenic influence on organic matter composition. Marine
Chemistry, 69, 117–137.
Cross-references
Climate Change
Dissolved Oxygen
Eutrophication
Nitrogen
Nutrient Dynamics
Nutrients
Oxygen Depletion
Phosphorus
ANTHROPOGENIC IMPACTS
Michael J. Kennish
Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences,
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences,
Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
Definition
Anthropogenic impacts in this volume refer to the adverse
effects of human activities on estuarine environments.
Introduction
Estuaries rank among the most heavily impacted aquatic
ecosystems on earth, being affected by a wide array of
anthropogenic activities both in adjoining coastal watersheds and in the water bodies themselves (Kennish,
2002). Most of these activities can be linked to ongoing
rapid human population growth and development of the
coastal zone. For example, about four billion people live
within 60 km of the world’s coastlines (Kennish, 2002;
Kennish et al., 2008). In the USA, more than 125 million
people now reside in coastal counties nationwide. People
inhabiting low-lying coastal areas are more vulnerable to
sea-level rise, coastal storms and storm surges, inundation
and flooding, and other coastal hazards.
While many people simply prefer to live near the ocean,
others inhabit the coastal zone for economic opportunity
involving tourism, recreational and commercial fisheries,
mariculture, transportation and shipping, domestic and
industrial construction, electric power generation, oil and
gas recovery, and other human activities. Escalating
human settlement has altered land use/land cover in
coastal watersheds, creating impervious surfaces that
facilitate nonpoint-source pollution input to estuaries.
Much of this is coupled to developing infrastructure such
as construction of roadways and bridges, electric utilities,
as well as water, sewer, and gas lines. Other major pollutant
delivery systems are point-source inputs. Some human
activities have physically altered estuarine shorelines and
habitats, impacting biotic communities. Included here are
the construction of bayshore housing, lagoons, bulkheads
and other shore protection features, harbor and marina
development, dredging and dredged material disposal,
wetland reclamation, and channel and inlet stabilization.
Upland modifications (e.g., dams and reservoirs, deforestation and habitat fragmentation, and channelization) can
significantly exacerbate other anthropogenic stresses
leading to greater pressures in estuarine systems. Increasing
freshwater diversions for agriculture and other human
needs, such as in California (USA), can significantly alter
salinity, circulation, and biotic communities in estuaries.
Estuarine impacts
Kennish et al. (2014a) identified 12 major anthropogenic
stressors on estuarine ecosystems. These include (1) eutrophication; (2) sewage and organic wastes; (3) habitat loss
and alteration, shoreline hardening, and erosion; (4) chemical contaminants; (5) human-induced sediment/particulate inputs; (6) overfishing; (7) intensive aquaculture;
(8) introduced/invasive species; (9) human-altered hydrological regimes; (10) climate change; (11) coastal subsidence; and (12) floatables/debris. An additional stressor
of importance is a group of pathogens that can impact
human use of estuaries. According to Kennish and Paerl
(2010), anthropogenic stressors can be categorized into
those that degrade water quality and are primarily chemical and biological in nature (e.g., nutrient enrichment,
chemical contaminants, and pathogens), impact habitat
and are mainly physical factors (e.g., shoreline hardening,
lagoon construction, dredging and dredged-material disposal), and alter biotic communities and are effectively
driven by multiple stressors (e.g., overfishing, introduced/invasive species, human-altered hydrological
regimes, and climate change).
Eutrophication
Nutrient enrichment, notably nitrogen and phosphorus,
has led the eutrophication of many estuaries, particularly
shallow systems with long water residence times
(Kennish and de Jonge, 2011). Reactive nitrogen inputs
ANTHROPOGENIC IMPACTS
29