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Modeling Total Suspended Solids (TSS) Concentrations in Narragansett Bay.
Citation:
Abdelrhman, M. Modeling Total Suspended Solids (TSS) Concentrations in Narragansett Bay. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R-16/195, 2016.
Impact/Purpose:
Suspended particles directly affect water clarity and attenuate light in the water column. Water clarity affects both phytoplankton and submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV), which control primary production in estuarine systems. Modeling of total suspended sediments (TSS) in estuarine systems enables prediction of water clarity and its effect on primary production under future scenarios of anthropogenic and environmental conditions.
Description:
This work covers mechanistic modeling of suspended particulates in estuarine systems with an application to Narragansett Bay, RI. Suspended particles directly affect water clarity and attenuate light in the water column. Water clarity affects both phytoplankton and submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV), which control primary production in estuarine systems. This report is not intended as a comprehensive review of suspended particulates in estuarine systems. The report presents a very brief background about suspended solids which helps interpret their in-situ measurements and understand the logic behind modeling their behavior under various environmental conditions.Assumptions are made to highlight gaps in knowledge and theory and their impact on the presented modeling analysis and results. These assumptions resemble facts that are practiced in the fields of total suspended solids and water clarity. They are standard, usually because of observations and analytical limitations.