title: Comprehensive assessment of coastal eutrophication in Taiwan and its implications for management strategy.
abstract: Due to the rapid population growth, anthropogenic activities result in agricultural, industrial, and urban diffuse runoffs that elevate the level of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus in coastal waters. Currently there is no integrated analysis for coastal eutrophication in Taiwan. A comprehensive analysis of the coastal eutrophic status was performed in this study based on decade-long coastal water quality monitoring data from Taiwan's Environmental Protection Administration. A 3-tiered monitoring strategy is recommended based on the severity of the current eutrophication state. Results indicate that the most problematic area of coastal eutrophication is located in the estuary of the Donggang River (DGR) and its adjacent coastal waters, i.e., the Kao-Ping mouth (KPM) and Dapeng Bay (DPB) in south-western Taiwan. With a worsening eutrophic status, these areas demand intensive monitoring and research with higher spatial and temporal resolutions to evaluate the stresses of nutrient forcing and predict possible future responses.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ocean Technology and Marine Affairs, National Cheng Kung University, 1 University Road, Tainan City 70101, Taiwan. Electronic address: tkliu@mail.ncku.edu.tw.
authors.forename: Ta-Kang
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ocean Technology and Marine Affairs, National Cheng Kung University, 1 University Road, Tainan City 70101, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ocean Technology and Marine Affairs, National Cheng Kung University, 1 University Road, Tainan City 70101, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Hou-Yu
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000383:Agriculture; D061006:Bays / Q000737:chemistry*; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000379:methods*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D063366:Estuaries; D005068:Eutrophication; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000032:analysis; D010758:Phosphorus / Q000032:analysis; D045483:Rivers / Q000737:chemistry*; D013624:Taiwan; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D010758:Phosphorus; D009584:Nitrogen
keywords: Ecological quality ratio (EQR); Estuarine eutrophic status (EES); Eutrophication; Nutrients