Sediment-water fluxes of N and P species in the Bohai Sea were investigated in Septem-ber-October 1998 and April-May 1999. The benthic fluxes of nutrient species were determined by incubating sediment core samples with bottom seawater bubbled with air or nitrogen. -2NO,+4NH, dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) and phosphorus (DOP), total dissolved nitrogen (TDN) and phosphorus (TDP), and -34PO showed a net exchange flux from seawater to sediment, while -3NO, dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) and -23SiO were released from sediment to seawater in the Bohai Sea. Sediment-water nutrient exchange increases DIN and reduces the phosphorus load in the Bohai Sea. The release of silicate from sediment to overlying seawater reduces potential silicate limitation of primary production resulted from decrease of riverine discharge. The exchange flux of nutrients showed no obvious seasonal variation. The present study showed that the concentrations and composition of nutrients in the water column were affected by suspended sediment, and that not all the exchangeable phosphate in sediment could be released via sediment resuspension.
Water samples were collected in the coastal area of the Changjiang Estuary on four cruises from August 2002 to May 2003. The seasonal variations of dissolved inorganic arsenic (DIAs) distributions were analyzed. The results showed that the distributions of DIAs were mainly influenced by the terrestrial input and the intrusion of the Kuroshio Subsurface Water (KSSW). The concentration of the total dissolved inorganic arsenic (TDIAs) decreased consecutively from winter to summer, while it increased in autumn. The distributions of TDIAs showed some relationships with salinity and suspended particulate matter (SPM). The relationships between DIAs speciation (including arsenite [As(Ⅲ)] and arsenate [As(Ⅴ)]), biological activity and the availabilities of the phosphate were investigated in the study area for the cruise August 2002. The ratio of As (Ⅲ)/TDIAs increased with the decrease of phosphate concentrations. In the bottom water, the As(Ⅲ)/TDIAs ratio decreased with the increasing of N/P. The concentration of TDIAs decreased 28.7% approximately after the occurrence of harmful algal blooms (HAB) because of the uptake of arsenate by algae. Further study is needed about the arsenic source/sink relationships in their vertical or horizontal profiles and the uptake mechanism during the occurrence of harmful algal blooms.
