Assessing Eutrophication: Inter-annual Variability of Chlorophyll Concentration in Negros Island Coastal Waters

The Master of Science in Environmental Science Program of the Department of Environmental Science invites all the members of the Loyola Schools community to the Thesis Defense of Ms. Felimee Faith Q. Casiano (MS ES candidate) on May 27, 2022 at 9:00 in the morning (online).

Ms. Casiano's thesis entitled, “Assessing Eutrophication: Inter-annual Variability of Chlorophyll Concentration in Negros Island Coastal Waters" will be presented to Ms. Jean Meir Jardeleza Mijares, Dr. May Celine Vicente, and Engr. Jude Estiva. Her advisers are Dr. Maria Aileen Leah G. Guzman and Dr. Karl Szekielda.

Abstract

Negros is one of the major islands of the Visayas region located in the central part of the Philippines. It is also the center of sugarcane cultivation and sugar production in the country. Over the past years, Negros Island has been subjected to anthropogenic pressures derived primarily from population growth and urbanization. This includes intensified urban emissions and higher demands on different sectors such as agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture. Along with this is the increase in nutrient loading to the environment which results in eutrophication of coastal waters. Eutrophication has significant impacts on the fisheries sector and societal health as it causes hypoxia and harmful algal blooms (HABs) which catalyze fish mortality and poisoning. It is an aim to determine the inter-annual variability of chlorophyll concentration in the coastal waters of Negros Island. Since nutrient concentration in the water directly influences the proliferation of algal communities, Chlorophyll-α (or Chl-α) can be used as an indicator of eutrophication. The study will be using remotely-sensed Chl-α concentration data covering up to 20 years that will be accessed from NASA’s Geospatial Interactive Online Visualization and Analysis Infrastructure (GIOVANNI), wherein data sets will be derived from MODIS-Aqua Multispectral scanning system. Linear and polynomial regression analysis will be used to analyze interannual and monthly changes in water chlorophyll concentration. Monitoring chlorophyll dynamics is an essential step in order to mitigate the degree of coastal eutrophication and its adverse impacts to the environment and to society.

Keywords: Negros Island, eutrophication, remote sensing

For those who wish to join the oral presentation and defense, kindly get in touch with Dr. Maria Aileen Leah G. Guzman at mguzman@ateneo.edu for the official Zoom link. Thank you.