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Distribution and Trophic Importance of Anthropogenic Nitrogen in Narragansett Bay: An Assessment Using Stable Isotopes

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Abstract

Narragansett Bay has been heavily influenced by human activities for more than 200 years. In recent decades, it has been one of the more intensively fertilized estuaries in the USA, with most of the anthropogenic nutrient load originating from sewage treatment plants (STP). This will soon change as tertiary treatment upgrades reduce nitrogen (N) loads by about one third or more during the summer. Before these reductions take place, we sought to characterize the sewage N signature in primary (macroalgae) and secondary (the hard clam, Mercenaria mercenaria) producers in the bay using stable isotopes of N (δ15N) and carbon (δ13C). The δ15N signatures of the macroalgae show a clear gradient of approximately 4‰ from north to south, i.e., high to low point source loading. There is also evidence of a west to east gradient of heavy to light values of δ15N in the bay consistent with circulation patterns and residual flows. The Providence River Estuary, just north of Narragansett Bay proper, receives 85% of STP inputs to Narragansett Bay, and lower δ15N values in macroalgae there reflected preferential uptake of 14N in this heavily fertilized area. Differences in pH from N stimulated photosynthesis and related shifts in predominance of dissolved C species may control the observed δ13C signatures. Unlike the macroalgae, the clams were remarkably uniform in both δ15N (13.2 ± 0.54‰ SD) and δ13C (−16.76 ± 0.61‰ SD) throughout the bay, and the δ15N values were 2–5‰ heavier than in clams collected outside the bay. We suggest that this remarkable uniformity reflects a food source of anthropogenically heavy phytoplankton formed in the upper bay and supported by sewage derived N. We estimate that approximately half of the N in the clams throughout Narragansett Bay may be from anthropogenic sources.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Jillian Hesse, Adam Pimenta, Amy Van Keuren, Jason Krumholtz, Matt Horn, and Amie Parris for their assistance in the laboratory and field, Boze Hancock from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Dennis Erkan the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, Division of Marine Fisheries for help with clam collection, and Jim Heltshe from the University of Rhode Island and the Environmental Protection Agency for assistance with statistical analyses. We would also like to thank the two anonymous reviewers of this manuscript for their insightful comments. This work was partially supported by Rhode Island Sea Grant, NOAA’s Dr. Nancy Foster Scholarship Program for A. Oczkowski, and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) through a scholarship to K. M. Henry. Additional support was provided by the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Program (NOAA). The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of NOAA, TNC, or the Department of Commerce.

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  1. Graduate School of Oceanography, The University of Rhode Island, South Ferry Road, Narragansett, 02882, RI, USA

    Autumn Oczkowski, Scott Nixon, Kelly Henry, Peter DiMilla, Michael Pilson, Stephen Granger & Betty Buckley

  2. Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Rhode Island, 100 Flagg Road, Kingston, 02881, RI, USA

    Carol Thornber

  3. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Atlantic Ecology Division, 27 Tarzwell Drive, Narragansett, RI, 02882, USA

    Richard McKinney

  4. The Ecosystems Center, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA, 02543, USA

    Joaquin Chaves

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Oczkowski, A., Nixon, S., Henry, K. et al. Distribution and Trophic Importance of Anthropogenic Nitrogen in Narragansett Bay: An Assessment Using Stable Isotopes. Estuaries and Coasts: J CERF 31, 53–69 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-007-9029-0

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