Long-term phytoplankton dynamics in the Zeeschelde estuary (Belgium) are driven by the interactive effects of de-eutrophication, altered hydrodynamics and extreme weather events.

We studied how changing human impacts affected phytoplankton dynamics in the freshwater and brackish tidal reaches of the Zeeschelde estuary (Belgium) between 2002 and 2018. Until the early 2000s, the Zeeschelde was heavily polluted due to high wastewater discharges. By 2008, water quality had improved, resulting in lower nutrient concentrations and higher oxygen levels.

Constraints on the adjustment of tidal marshes to accelerating sea level rise.

Much uncertainty exists about the vulnerability of valuable tidal marsh ecosystems to relative sea level rise. Previous assessments of resilience to sea level rise, to which marshes can adjust by sediment accretion and elevation gain, revealed contrasting results, depending on contemporary or Holocene geological data. By analyzing globally distributed contemporary data, we found that marsh sediment accretion increases in parity with sea level rise, seemingly confirming previously claimed marsh resilience.

Modeling the impacts of multiple environmental stress factors on estuarine copepod populations.

Many studies have focused on natural stress factors that shape the spatial and temporal distribution of calanoid copepods, but bioassays have shown that copepods are also sensitive to a broad range of contaminants. Although both anthropogenic and natural stress factors are obviously at play in natural copepod communities, most studies consider only one or the other. In the present investigation, we modeled the combined impact of both anthropogenic and natural stress factors on copepod populations.

Estuaries as filters: the role of tidal marshes in trace metal removal.

Flux calculations demonstrate that many estuaries are natural filters for trace metals. Yet, the underlying processes are poorly investigated. In the present study, it was hypothesized that intertidal marshes contribute significantly to the contaminant filter function of estuaries.