2002 Volume 14 Issue 1 Pages 125-136
In inner bay and coastal area, water pollution due to eutrophication has been regarded as a most serious problem for a long time. Ecotechnology, which is the environment restoring technology using natural purification function of ecosystems, has been expected to control eutrophication. To develop ecotechnology using a function of seaweed bed, we carried out a preliminary study of the nutrient uptake characteristic of Sargassum horneri living widely in Japanese coastal area. The results obtained from the laboratory experiment showed that the nutrient uptake rate of S. homeri became the highest from May to June in which the growth rate was also the highest. We could make the equation of the nutrient uptake rate which was the function of growth stage, nutrient concentration, illumination intensity and temperature. The field enclosure experiments made it clear that the nutrient uptake rate of S. horneri in actual sea area could be estimated by the obtained equation. The nutrient uptake rate, which was estimated by the production amount of S. horneri in actual sea area, was compared to that of calculated value. The result indicated that density effect occurred in actual sea area.
