Coastal eutrophication driven by long-distance transport of large river nutrient loads, the case of Xiangshan Bay, China.

With accelerating anthropogenic activities, the overloading of land-derived nutrients and the resultant eutrophication are threatening coastal aquatic habitats worldwide. In semi-enclosed coastal bays, eutrophication is always considered a local problem that can be mitigated by nutrient reduction at a regional scale. However, as the main nutrient drains major global river discharges can have far-reaching effects over hundreds of kilometers alongshore, which are usually not precisely recognized in local coastal zone management.