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Surface Water Metabolism Potential in Groundwater-Fed Coastal Waters of Hawaii Island, USA

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Abstract

Submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) has become increasingly recognized as an important source of freshwater and nutrients to coastal waters worldwide. Although groundwater nutrients have been found to cause algal blooms in many temperate coastal waters, little is known about the biological response to these nutrients in the tropics. On the leeward coast of Hawaii Island, SGD is the dominant freshwater and nutrient source to coastal waters. Kiholo Bay, HI and Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park, HI are two nearshore regions with well-documented SGD with high nutrient concentrations; however, little is known about how biological processes within the surface waters respond to these inputs. This study examined how potential gross primary production (pGPP), respiration (RESP), and potential metabolism (pMET) within surface waters differed inside and outside of groundwater plumes at these two sites and between wet and dry seasons. pGPP and RESP were both significantly higher within groundwater plumes, suggesting that SGD stimulated these biological processes; however, RESP responded to a much greater extent than pGPP, resulting in heterotrophic surface waters. RESP also varied seasonally, with greater rates during the dry season compared to the wet one; pGPP did not vary seasonally. Autotrophic conditions were found within groundwater plumes at Kiholo Bay, while heterotrophic conditions were found within them at Kaloko-Honokohau and were greater during the dry season. Overall, our results show that coastal biological processes respond to SGD and that their responses vary over short spatial and temporal scales.

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Acknowledgments

This project would not have been possible without J. Adolf and M. Church whose guidance and comments helped improve this project. I would also like to thank J. Walker, R. Most, A. Bulseco, and N. Lindsey for assistance in sample collection and processing and L. Mead for assistance with developing methods. This project was funded by National Science Foundation Grant No. EPS-0903833. Additional funding was provided by a research grant from the Partnerships for Reform in Math and Science (PRSIM) program. Any views, opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation (NSF) or any of its subagencies.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Tropical Conservation Biology and Environmental Science Graduate Program, University of Hawaii at Hilo, 200 W. Kawili St., Hilo, HI, 96720, USA

    Erik E. Johnson

  2. Marine Science Department, University of Hawai at Hilo, 200 W. Kawili St., Hilo, HI, 96720, USA

    Tracy N. Wiegner

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  1. Erik E. Johnson
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Correspondence to Erik E. Johnson.

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Communicated by Isaac Santos

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Johnson, E.E., Wiegner, T.N. Surface Water Metabolism Potential in Groundwater-Fed Coastal Waters of Hawaii Island, USA. Estuaries and Coasts 37, 712–723 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-013-9708-y

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