Combined environmental stress from shrimp farm and dredging releases in a subtropical coastal lagoon (SE Gulf of California)

• Published in: Marine pollution bulletin Vol. 104; no. 1-2; pp. 83 - 91
• Main Authors: Cardoso-Mohedano, J.G., Páez-Osuna, F., Amezcua-Martínez, F., Ruiz-Fernández, A.C., Ramírez-Reséndiz, G., Sanchez-Cabeza, J.A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 15-03-2016
• Subjects: Animals; Aquaculture; aquatic ecosystems; Brackish; California; chlorophyll; Chlorophyll - analysis; coastal water; coastal zone management; Crustacea - physiology; Decapoda; dissolved oxygen; Dredging; Ecosystem; ecosystem services; effluents; Environment; Environmental Monitoring; Environmental stress; estuaries; Eutrophication; farms; Gulf of California; Marine; nitrites; nitrogen; Nitrogen - analysis; Nutrients; particulate organic matter; sediments; shrimp; Shrimp farming; Stress, Physiological; synergism; Uria; Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis; water pollution; Water Quality; Gulf of California; ISE, Mexico, California Gulf; Gulf of California; Nutrients; Shrimp farming; Dredging; Environmental stress
• ISSN: 0025-326X; 1879-3363
• DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2016.02.008

Nutrient pollution causes environmental damages on aquatic ecosystems worldwide. Eutrophication produces impacts in coastal ecosystems, affecting biota and ecosystem services. The Urias coastal lagoon (SE Gulf of California) is a sub-tropical estuary under several environmental pressures such as nutrient inputs from shrimp farm effluents and dredging related to port operations, which can release substances accumulated in sediments. We assessed the water quality impacts caused by these activities and results showed that i) nitrogen was the limiting nutrient, ii) shrimp farm effluents increased particulate organic matter and chlorophyll a in the receiving stations, and iii) dredging activities increased nitrite and reduced dissolved oxygen concentrations. The co-occurrence of the shrimp farm releases and dredging activities was likely the cause of a negative synergistic effect on water quality which mainly decreases dissolved oxygen and increases nitrite concentrations. Coastal zone management should avoid the co-occurrence of these, and likely others, stressors in coastal ecosystems.
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•We assessed the impacts caused by shrimp farm effluents and dredging activities.•Shrimp farm effluents increased organic matter and chlorophyll a.•Dredging activities increased nitrite and reduced dissolved oxygen concentrations.•The co-occurrence of shrimp farm and dredging caused a negative synergistic effect.