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The phosphorus budget of the Marsdiep tidal basin (Dutch Wadden Sea) in the period 1950–1985: importance of the exchange with the North Sea

  • Conference paper
North Sea—Estuaries Interactions

Part of the book series: Developments in Hydrobiology ((DIHY,volume 55))

Abstract

Nutrient and carbon budgets of the western part of the Dutch Wadden Sea are based on the concept formulated by Postma (1954): import of organic compounds from the North Sea, mineralization in the estuary ans subsequently an export of dissolved inorganic nutrients to the North Sea. In this paper the phosphorus budget of the westernmost part of the Wadden Sea (Marsdiep basin) during the period 1950–1985 is considered to evaluate this concept and to investigate whether eutrophication processes have changed these P-budgets during the last decades. Most attention is paid to the importance of the exchange of P-components between the tidal basin and the open sea. The budgets are based on a general mass balance equation in which the main entries are the loadings via the freshwater sources, the net sediment-water exchange, the exchange with the North Sea, the input from the adjacent Vlie basin, and a transformation term representing the interchange between dissolved and particulate phosphorus. Averaged over the entire period 55% of the phosphate input (SRP) to the basin is delivered by the fresh water sources, and 45% by the Vlie basin. For non-SRP components these numbers are 50% and 40% respectively, while only 10% comes from the North Sea. The import from the North Sea, as calculated by our model thus seems less important than previously documented. There is a clear effect of the eutrophication during the last decades. In the first 20 years of the period investigated there was a moderate increase in the TP input to the basin, partly caused by an increasing input of non-SRP (TP minus soluble reactive phosphorus) from the North Sea. In 1970/71 almost 30% of the non-SRP loading originated from the North Sea. From approximately 1975 onwards this import of non-SRP turns into an export, while the TP-loading from the other sources inclined, until a maximum was reached in 1981. Recently a decrease in the TP-inputs has been observed. It is concluded that the recent output of phosphorus from the Marsdiep basin may have a considerable impact on the adjacent area of the North Sea.

Publication no. 2 of the project Applied Scientific Research Neth Inst, for Sea Res. (BEWON).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, P. O. Box 59, 1790 AB, Den Burg, Texel, The Netherlands

    Wim van Raaphorst & Henk W. van der Veer

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  1. Wim van Raaphorst
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  2. Henk W. van der Veer
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Stirling, UK

    Donald S. McLusky

  2. Rijkswaterstaat, The Netherlands

    Victor N. de Jonge

  3. Northumbrian Water, UK

    John Pomfret

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© 1990 Kluwer Academic Publishers

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van Raaphorst, W., van der Veer, H.W. (1990). The phosphorus budget of the Marsdiep tidal basin (Dutch Wadden Sea) in the period 1950–1985: importance of the exchange with the North Sea. In: McLusky, D.S., de Jonge, V.N., Pomfret, J. (eds) North Sea—Estuaries Interactions. Developments in Hydrobiology, vol 55. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-2000-2_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-2000-2_3

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