Title: Unsightly algal blooms in Tumon Bay, Guam's premier tourist location: possible connection to hotel landscaping activities

Authors: Gary R.W. Denton, Carmen Sian-Denton

Addresses: University of Guam, Guam. ' Guam Waterworks Authority, Guam

Abstract: Tumon Bay is the tourist Mecca of Guam and receives over a million visitors annually. Maintaining the natural beauty of the area is therefore tantamount to maintaining a healthy economy. One problem local hoteliers are faced with is the daily removal of unsightly green alga (Enteromorpha clathrata) from the intertidal zone where tourists spend much of their time relaxing. Blooms of this alga have long been associated with the naturally high nitrate levels in intruding groundwater. Recent evidence suggests an increase in the ambient availability of phosphorus associated with hotel landscaping activities may be more important and is considered here.

Keywords: algal blooms; Tumon Bay; Guam; tourist locations; tourism; hotel landscaping; green algae; Enteromorpha clathrata; nitrate levels; phosphorus.

DOI: 10.1504/IER.2007.053983

Interdisciplinary Environmental Review, 2007 Vol.9 No.1, pp.94 - 106

Published online: 13 May 2013 *

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