Eutrophication refers to nutrient enrichment that leads to what?

• A. Dissolution of oxygen in water due to temperature.
• B. Reduction of nutrient levels due to uptake by organisms.
• C. A process by which nutrients become highly concentrated in a body of water, leading to increased growth of organisms such as algae or cyanobacteria
• D. Formation of scale in pipes.

Answer: (C)

Eutrophication is nutrient enrichment that fuels excessive growth of algae and cyanobacteria in a water body. When nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus enter water in high amounts, they act like fertilizer for photosynthetic organisms, causing rapid proliferation or blooms. This surge in biomass can shade other aquatic plants, and when the blooms decompose, oxygen is consumed, potentially creating low-oxygen conditions that stress or kill aquatic life.

The statement that best captures this is the one describing nutrients becoming highly concentrated in a body of water, leading to increased growth of algae or cyanobacteria. The other statements aren’t about nutrient-driven growth: they describe oxygen dissolving more slowly due to temperature, a decrease in nutrients rather than an increase, or formation of scale in pipes, none of which define eutrophication.