Project description
Developing better measurements for eutrophication
Eutrophication is a phenomenon observed in large bodies of water that have become overly enriched with minerals and nutrients, inducing the growth of algae and potentially depleting oxygen. The restoration of these environments, particularly around lakes, is critical for future biodiversity and the resilience to climate change. It is also legally binding under EU directives. The EU-funded OSTRAP project aims to reconstruct eutrophication with a direct, quantifiable and independent measure of phosphate. By doing so, the project will significantly advance the ability to define reference conditions for shallow lake restoration targets. It will also help predict the effects of future climate change on freshwater biodiversity.
Objective
Shallow lakes provide extensive ecosystem services and are ecologically important non-marine resources, supporting a diverse flora and fauna. However, worldwide lakes are threatened by environmental degradation (e.g. nutrient pollution from agricultural fertilizers). The restoration of these environments is critical for future biodiversity, resilience to climate change, the provision of ecosystem services, and is legally binding under the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD).To meet the requirements of ‘good ecological status’, lakes must not be significantly altered from pre-defined ‘reference conditions’, which are the conditions expected in the absence of anthropogenic impacts. Due to limited long-term ecological monitoring data that covers centennial time-scales, palaeolimnology has been suggested as an alternative to define reference conditions for effective restoration. Existing approaches (e.g. diatom transfer functions) for reconstructing nutrient enrichment are, however, problematic due to their indirect approach that involves major assumptions. Multi-proxy studies attempt to disentangle drivers, but fail due to the lack of an independent measure of phosphate (P). Here, I propose a method to reconstruct eutrophication with a direct, quantifiable and independent measure of P via analysis of ostracod (small bivalved crustaceans) shell chemistry. To produce robust, quantitative palaeo-P reconstructions based on fossil ostracod shells, the research will combine laboratory, mesocosm and field experiments to establish calibrations in controlled and natural settings. I will demonstrate the quantitative reconstruction of P concentrations over the past ~200 years using well-dated lake sediment cores from sites across Europe. This project will be a significant advancement in the ability to 1) set reference condition P concentrations for shallow lake restoration targets under the WFD and 2) to predict the effects of future climate change on freshwater biodiversity.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences earth and related environmental sciences environmental sciences pollution
- natural sciences biological sciences ecology ecosystems
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2019
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
8000 Aarhus C
Denmark
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.