Coral Study Traces Excess Nitrogen to Maui WWTP

A new method for reconstructing changes in nitrogen sources over time has enabled scientists to connect excess nutrients in the coastal waters of West Maui, Hawaii, to a sewage treatment facility that injects treated wastewater into the ground. Algal blooms and degradation of coral reefs along Maui's coast have been attributed to nutrient pollution, and previous studies have suggested the Lahaina Wastewater Reclamation Facility is a major source of excess nutrients in coastal waters. Previous experiments using dye tracers showed a direct link between the facility's injection site and small submarine seeps that discharge freshwater near the coral reefs. But