Regional classification of Pacific Northwest estuaries by wetland and land cover patterns

Increased anthropogenic nutrient loading and the subsequent eutrophication of coastal
ecosystems is a growing ecological and economic problem both in the United States and globally. Eutrophication can result in a range of ecological impacts including hypoxic conditions, fish kills, loss of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV), degraded benthic conditions,
harmful algal blooms, and detrimental increases in benthic macroalgae. The nature and severity of the impacts vary with the level of nutrient loading as well as with the estuary type and regional drivers.