Unabated Nitrogen Pollution Favors Growth of Toxic Cyanobacteria over Chlorophytes in Most Hypereutrophic Lakes

Abstract

) led to the dominance of chlorophytes over cyanobacteria and lower microcystin content. This indicates that N loads needed to sustain chlorophyte dominance are uncommon, likely restricted to select shallow lakes directly exposed to urban or agricultural effluents. As most N pollution regimes in P-rich lakes will favor toxic cyanobacterial dominance, restricting future N pollution will help curb further cyanobacterial dominance in lakes both directly and by constraining the capacity for future P loading and climate warming to drive cyanobacterial growth.