"Wisdom begins in wonder" – Socrates
Category: Ecology
Hypertrophic Lakes
06/30/26
“What is the highest level of algal contamination for lakes?”
A lake’s trophic state index determines its algal power. Lakes at the highest end of the index (above 70) are classified as Hypertrophic Lakes. Hypertrophic lakes have very poor water quality and low water visibility. Algal overgrowth can be so intense that animals die off en masse from lack of dissolved oxygen.
Trophic State Index
06/28/26
“How can we quantify algal bloom intensity?”
Algal blooms in water bodies result from high nutrient load and strong environmental conditions. The associated biological productivity can be measured by the Trophic State Index. The trophic state index captures the amount of light striking the surface of a water body, the concentration of particulate matter, and the physical measuring depth to determine the algal bloom intensity.
Why Saltwater Kills Freshwater Trees
06/25/26
“Why does saltwater kill freshwater trees?”
Trees require water to live. However, saltwater is toxic to trees not adapted to it. Saltwater impedes roots’ ability to absorb water, is toxic to plant cells, damages roots, and hurts oxygen delivery to trees. This is Why Saltwater Kills Freshwater Trees.
Capturing Stormwater for Groundwater Recharge
06/24/26
“How can we recharge groundwater with stormwater?”
It can be difficult to replenish a drained aquifer. Giving more water to it means taking water from somewhere else. However, sprmwater adds extra water to a local system. By capturing it, we can direct it to aquifers to replenish them. This is how Capturing Stormwater for Groundwater Recharge can work. People use a wide range of methods to accomplish this, from green infrastructure to injection wells. Managers must ensure that the stormwater is free of pollutants before storing it in aquifers to prevent contamination.
Image credit: https://oldcastleinfrastructure.com/
The Narta Lagoon
06/21/22
“What’s so special about the Narta Lagoon in Albania?”
Albania is a beautiful country on the Western Balkan Mediterranean coast. In its southern portion lies The Narta Lagoon, a critical protected wetland ecosystem. The Narta Lagoon is home to over 200 species of birds (including a community of around 3,000 individual flamingos). The wetland is, as of writing, under threat of destruction by a development from Jared Kushner’s private equity firm Affinity Partners. People all over Albania are protesting against this project.
The Abyssal Plain
06/09/26
“What is the giant underwater plain on the ocean floor?”
The oceans lie above the Earth’s crust. Between 3,000 – 6,000 km below the ocean surface, so deep that sunlight can’t reach it, lies a giant flat part of the ocean floor known as The Abyssal Plain. The abyssal plain’s ultra smooth flatness is forge by from millions of years of particulate settlement depositing over surface irregularities. This flatness makes the abyssal plain suitable for undersea cable routing. Other interesting facts about the abyssal plain include pressures can reach up to 600 times atmospheric pressure and water temperature ranges between a stable 2 – 3 degrees celsius.
Image credit: https://www.thedailyatom.com/
The Passaic River
05/30/26
“What’s so special about the Passaic River?”
New Jersey is a lush state with a mountainous northern portion, granting favorable conditions for river formation. One of these rivers, the Passaic River, has many unique properties. Its headwaters begin in Northern New Jersey, and then it flows 80 miles through forests, wetlands, and suburbs until it empties into Newark Bay. The lower 17 miles of the Passaic River is considered a tidal water body, and industry used this portion for a variety of waste stream discharge since the 19th century. This pollution included byproduct production from Agent Orange production used to terrorize Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Consequently, the lower portion of the Passaic River is designated a Superfund site known as the Diamond Alkali Superfund site.
Image credit: https://media.istockphoto.com/
The Hackensack River
05/28/26
“What’s special about the Hackensack River in New Jersey?”
New Jersey has many rivers. One of them, The Hackensack River, is an anchor for North Jersey. With its headwaters in what’s now Southeastern New York, it strikes a meandering path almost parallel to the hudson before draining into the New Jersey Meadowlands. The lower portion of the Hackensack river is heavily polluted from industrial runoff and sewage. At one point, the Hackensack River was a hypoxic dead zone.
Image credit: cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com
Filter Feeders
05/20/26
“How can marine creatures eat using filtration?”
Water bodies can contain a vast supply of organic matter and microorganisms. Some marine creatures consume vast amounts of water and then filter it for organic matter and microorganisms to digest. These creatures, called Filter Feeders, are beautiful specimens that also clean the water bodies they inhabit. Filter feeders have a mighty range in size, from gargantuan whales to tiny krill.
