Publication Abstracts

Copple et al. 2023

Copple, S.P., D.M. Peteet, D. Balk, C. Chang, B. Jones, and M. Tzortziou, 2023: Marsh archive reveals human population history and future implications for estuarine health in Long Island Sound. Sci. Total Environ., 895, 164885, doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.164885.

Coastal marshes are efficient ecosystems providing a multitude of benefits for invertebrates, birds, fish and humans alike. Yet despite these benefits, wetlands are threatened by anthropogenic inputs such as human wastewater which contain high levels of nitrogen (N). Increased nitrogen loads cause eutrophication and hypoxia in estuaries leading to further degradation of these valuable ecosystems that are already stressed by sea level rise and climate change. Policies to protect wetlands via wastewater treatments are reactive rather than proactive and a growing body of research shows that characteristics associated with population health and economic activity can be identified in wastewater. Analysis of a 2-m salt marsh sediment core reveals δN15 signatures indicative of human population rise and connects human impact to ecosystem health. Using key X-ray fluorescence (XRF), pollen, sediment and nitrogen signatures along the core, a robust chronology was produced dating back to 1700. This result was coupled with population data to observe the relationship between δN15 levels and population over three centuries. There is a statistically significant positive correlation between δN15 and population. Other external factors such as federal government policies (regulating clean water) show a clear reduction in this association but the use of synthetic nitrogen fertilizer masks the strength of this relationship. Further research to refine the relationship between population and δN15 could be beneficial in predicting nitrogen loads as human population grows, which in turn would create a proactive system to protect our coastal ecosystems.

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BibTeX Citation

@article{co07310h,
  author={Copple, S. P. and Peteet, D. M. and Balk, D. and Chang, C. and Jones, B. and Tzortziou, M.},
  title={Marsh archive reveals human population history and future implications for estuarine health in Long Island Sound},
  year={2023},
  journal={Science of the Total Environment},
  volume={895},
  pages={164885},
  doi={10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.164885},
}

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RIS Citation

TY  - JOUR
ID  - co07310h
AU  - Copple, S. P.
AU  - Peteet, D. M.
AU  - Balk, D.
AU  - Chang, C.
AU  - Jones, B.
AU  - Tzortziou, M.
PY  - 2023
TI  - Marsh archive reveals human population history and future implications for estuarine health in Long Island Sound
JA  - Sci. Total Environ.
JO  - Science of the Total Environment
VL  - 895
SP  - 164885
DO  - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.164885
ER  -

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