EPA’s Science to Support Nutrient-Related Water Quality Goals

Nutrient pollution is the most widespread water quality problem facing the United States, with far-ranging consequences for environmental condition, economic prosperity, and human health and well-being. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Nutrients and Harmful Algal Blooms research is housed within the Office of Research and Development’s (ORD) Safe and Sustainable Water Resources Research Program (SSWR). It supports EPA’s Office of Water (OW), which has specific research needs as it develops new tools for states, tribes, and local decision-makers to establish and achieve water quality goals. ORD’s research under SSWR includes laboratory analyses, monitoring, modeling, and decision-support approaches to inform the protection of different types of waters (e.g., streams, lakes) for different designated uses (e.g., aquatic life, recreation, and drinking water source protection). Establishing nutrient-related water quality management goals requires an understanding of the impacts of excess nutrients on water bodies and aquatic life, and the processes affecting their recovery. An overview of nutrients research in EPA ORD will be provided, focusing on studies that support the key OW objective of attaining nutrient-related water quality goals. This presentation will summarize research that 1) provides information, methods, or approaches to determine nutrient-related impacts in watersheds and water bodies, 2) relates the condition of watersheds and water bodies to nutrient loading, water quality, and aquatic life; and 3) integrates these results to identify effective approaches for restoration and recovery. This research advances the science needed to inform decisions related to nutrient water quality goals of EPA program offices, EPA regions, states, and tribes.

Impact/Purpose

This invited presentation will give a broad overview of SSWR’s Nutrients and Harmful Algal Blooms research program, focusing specifically on the research we are doing to understand the impacts of excess nutrients on water bodies and aquatic life, and the processes affecting their recovery. This research supports the establishment nutrient-related water quality management goals.

Citation

Rea, A., H. Golden, Cheryl A. Brown, K. Schofield, AND B. Rashleigh. EPA’s Science to Support Nutrient-Related Water Quality Goals. The 9th International Congress on Sustainability Science and Engineering (ICOSSE), NA, August 03 - 05, 2020.

• REA_ICOSSE_FINAL 508 TAGGED.PDF (PDF)  (NA  pp, 4.0 MB, about PDF)