INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT

A specific experience/example of how certain life practices they have seen or experienced or have
information about, that are helping to achieve either an SDG or maintain Planetary Boundary level.

Submitted in partial completion of the course

SUSTAINABILITY AND BUSINESS

Submitted by,
Arindam Chowdhury (2022PGP133)
 Nitrogen and Phosphorus flows to the biosphere and oceans

Humans have significantly altered the nitrogen and phosphorus biogeochemical cycles because of numerous industrial and
agricultural practises. Since both phosphorus and nitrogen are necessary for plant growth, fertiliser manufacturing and
application are of utmost importance.
More atmospheric nitrogen is presently produced by human activities than by all terrestrial processes put together. Instead
of being absorbed by crops, a large portion of this additional reactive nitrogen is released in various ways into the
atmosphere. As it rains, it accumulates in the terrestrial biosphere or contaminates streams and coastal areas. Like this,
plants only absorb a small fraction of the phosphorus fertilisers used in food production systems, and a large portion of the
phosphorus mobilised by people ends up in aquatic systems. As bacteria eat the blooms of algae that expand in response to
the high nitrogen supply, these may become oxygen starved.
Eutrophication is a consequence of excess nutrients primarily nitrogen and phosphorous in water bodies which
cause harmful algal blooms, dead zones, and loss of biodiversity.
➢ Real life experience where practices and processes were put in place to reverse the effects of Eutrophication

Recovering from eutrophication of local water bodies in Kolkata – Rabindra Sarabar Lake

Eutrophication, or the overnutrientation of freshwater and coastal habitats, is a fast-worsening environmental

catastrophe. Almost 500 coastal locations are affected by eutrophication on a global scale. Dead zone occurrences in
coastal areas have increased from 10 reported cases in 1960 to 405 documented cases in 2008. Dead zones are
produced by eutrophic conditions. Eutrophication is another issue that affects many freshwater lakes, streams, and
reservoirs around the world; in the US, eutrophication is regarded as the main factor contributing to freshwater
impairment.
Things policy makers did:
1. To describe the consequences of eutrophication, gather data on water quality, and guide adaptive management
measures, implement research and monitoring programmes. Information is a crucial component in the creation
of effective eutrophication reduction techniques.
2. Educate people about eutrophication. Neither the public nor politicians have a good understanding of
eutrophication and its repercussions. Raising the profile of eutrophication within communities and creating a
base and support for effective initiatives to reduce nutrient losses and eutrophication are both major goals of
public awareness campaigns, school environmental education programmes, targeted outreach, and technical
help.
3. Establish rules to reduce nutrient losses, such as standards, tech specifications, or pollution ceilings for certain
industries.

4. Use taxes, levies, subsidies, or environmental markets to establish financial and economic incentives that will
support nutrient-reduction initiatives.

5. Natural ecosystems that catch and cycle nutrients should be preserved and restored.

6. To address eutrophication, create institutions that are strong, active, and well-coordinated. Any eutrophication
approach must be supported by institutions that can effectively execute and enforce policies, especially when
several jurisdictions are involved.

7. Use environmental synergies while creating comprehensive eutrophication policies. There are many ways to
reduce nutrient pollution while also addressing other environmental issues like acid rain, smog, and climate
change. The selection and use of policies should aim to maximise environmental benefits.
STEPS IN REVERSING EUTROPHICATION
Reducing or stopping anthropogenic nutrient inputs to aquatic bodies is the first step in stopping eutrophication caused by
humans. Algal abundance and growth rates, water clarity, and other ecosystem elements are anticipated to advance towards
the pre-eutrophic condition after nutrient concentrations decline. These hypotheses assume that oligotrophication will
follow the opposite trajectory of eutrophication when nutrients are lowered or stopped, based on measured connections
between rising chlorophyll a concentrations and nutrients.
Second, even though the known sources had stopped, runoff, groundwater, or air deposition might still have provided
nutrients. It is more difficult to reduce fertiliser inputs to surface waters because of past practises because the build-up and
subsequent release of nutrients in long-term storage areas, such as agricultural soils, may impede recovery. Denitrification
is thought to remove N from the environment, hence legacy P has received more attention. Yet, there is mounting evidence
that N can also build in soils, even though it is unclear how long-term legacy N leakage might occur.
Finally, shifting baselines that make historical conditions impossible to achieve could be brought about by changes in
environmental conditions or other factors, alone or in combination (Duarte et al. 2008; Bennion et al. 2010; Carstensen et
al. 2011). In both lake and marine environments, internal P loading from sediments is widely cited as a factor slowing
down eutrophication recovery (Jeppesen et al. 2005; Stigebrandt et al. 2014). Water residence times, circulation patterns,
nutrient concentrations, and the distribution and phenology of important species could also shift as a result of climate-
driven changes in hydrology, precipitation, and temperature (Scavia et al. 2002). Furthermore, eutrophic environments
may allow non-native organisms to establish themselves and persist even after nutrient loads are lowered (Higgins and
Vander Zanden 2010).

Find the link to my YouTube video on Eutrophication in Rabindra Sarabar Lake

https://youtu.be/9Alft33R5GQ