Reef degradation on Maui linked to quality of coastal groundwater

Land-based pollutants, such as fertilizers and chemicals in wastewater, infiltrate into the groundwaters beneath land and eventually exit into nearshore ecosystems as submarine groundwater discharge (SGD)--seeping into the coastal zone beneath the ocean's surface. A new study used a combination of field experiments and chemical analysis of water and algae to show that the quality of coastal groundwater plays a major role in determining the health of nearshore ecosystems in Hawai'i.

from Oceanography News -- ScienceDaily http://ift.tt/2f5JR7X
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