eutrophication

American  

[yoo-trah-fi-kay-shuhn] / yuˌtrɑ fɪˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. Ecology. the act or process of becoming eutrophic, as from sources such as sewage and leached fertilizers; the pollution of a body of water or wetland.

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eutrophication British  

/ juːˌtrɒfɪˈkeɪʃən /

noun

1. a process by which pollution from such sources as sewage effluent or leachate from fertilized fields causes a lake, pond, or fen to become overrich in organic and mineral nutrients, so that algae and cyanobacteria grow rapidly and deplete the oxygen supply

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eutrophication Scientific  

/ yo̅o̅-trŏf′ĭ-kā′shən /

1. The process by which a lake, pond, or stream becomes eutrophic, typically as a result of mineral and organic runoff from the surrounding land. The increased growth of plants and algae that accompanies eutrophication depletes the dissolved oxygen content of the water and often causes a die-off of other organisms.

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Other Word Forms

• eutrophicated adjective
• eutrophied adjective

Example Sentences

This causes accelerated growth of algae and other plant life in a process called eutrophication which starves other organisms like fish of oxygen.

From BBC • May 24, 2024

“This is part of what’s called the eutrophication process, the aging of the lake or reservoir,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times • May 8, 2024

"The AOM produce either nitrate, which leaches into groundwater and surrounding bodies of water, causing eutrophication, or nitrous oxide, which is a powerful greenhouse gas."

From Science Daily • Feb. 1, 2024

On earth, cyanobacteria can be a big problem, as it grows in polluted waterways causing eutrophication — a nutrient-induced increase in phytoplankton productivity in the water body.

From Salon • Jan. 27, 2023

A major effect from fertilizer runoff is saltwater and freshwater eutrophication, a process whereby nutrient runoff causes the overgrowth of algae and a number of consequential problems.

From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013