Soil Runoff & The Eutrophication of the Potomac River

Eutrophication is an accelerated process of algae growth in bodies of water; due to the increase in nutrients, often phosphorus and nitrogen. Eutrophication is damaging to aquatic ecosystems because when large amounts of algae form, they absorb most of, not if all, the dissolved oxygen in the water, ultimately killing the other animals and plants within the ecosystem.

This map details the locations of various local farms around the Potomac River, outlined in dark blue. Each farm is less than one mile off the shoreline of the river. The variations in colors from orange to light grey depict the slope of the surrounding terrain. The following geographic location only has terrain containing slopes of 21° - 30° (dark orange) and 1° - 0° (light grey). This layer reveals the locations of the farms being placed on slopes of 6° - 10°, angling towards the Potomac River.

Similar to the first map shown, this map depicts the percentages of impaired water in the Potomac River through the Environmental Protection Agency database. The sections of the river colored yellow display water that is 65 to 75% impaired, orange is 75 to 85% impaired, while red is 85 to 100% impaired. As detailed in the map, there is a noticeable relationship between farm location and water quality. The two most common factors when measuring water toxicity consisted of murkiness and salinity. Murky water is often caused by an increase of loose soil and algae from an excess of nutrients being discharged into the river. While the salinity is the increase in salt in the water, increasing the pH, often caused by nearby agriculture loosening the soil leading to erosion of minerals.