Definition

1. Noun:
   • The process by which a body of water becomes enriched with dissolved nutrients, especially phosphates and nitrates, that stimulate the growth of aquatic plant life, often resulting in the depletion of dissolved oxygen and harm to animal life.

Usage

• Noun:
  • The eutrophication of the lake was caused by fertilizer runoff from nearby farms.
  • Scientists are studying methods to reverse the effects of eutrophication in coastal waters.
  • A key symptom of eutrophication is the proliferation of algae, known as an algal bloom.

Advanced Usage

• Cultural eutrophication: Refers to the acceleration of eutrophication by human activities.
  • Cultural eutrophication from sewage discharge has severely impacted the bay's ecosystem.
• To undergo eutrophication: Describes the process happening to a body of water.
  • The reservoir is beginning to undergo eutrophication due to increased development in its watershed.

Variants and Related Words

• Eutrophic (adj): Describing a body of water rich in nutrients and with associated plant life, sometimes to a harmful degree.
  • The eutrophic conditions led to a fish kill.
• Eutrophy (n): The state of being nutrient-rich. (Less common than "eutrophication").
• Hypereutrophication (n): An extreme state of eutrophication.

Synonyms

• Nutrient pollution: A broader term for the introduction of excess nutrients into an environment.
• Algal bloom: A common visible result of eutrophication, though not synonymous with the entire process.

Related Concepts (Not Phrasal Verbs)

• Anoxia / Hypoxia: Conditions of little or no oxygen in water, which are direct consequences of eutrophication.
• Runoff: The movement of water (and dissolved substances like fertilizers) over land, a primary cause of eutrophication.
• Dead zone: An area in a body of water with extremely low oxygen levels, often caused by eutrophication.

Noun

1. excessive nutrients in a lake or other body of water, usually caused by runoff of nutrients (animal waste, fertilizers, sewage) from the land, which causes a dense growth of plant life; the decomposition of the plants depletes the supply of oxygen, leading to the death of animal life
   • he argued that the controlling factor in eutrophication is not nitrate but phosphate