Abstract

Eutrophication is one of the major problems facing aquatic systems over the world. Currently, nutrient inputs to aquatic ecosystems have been studied in different parts of the globe. In the present study, a mesocosm experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of dissolved nutrients on primary production and physicochemical properties of tap water in Mekelle Tigray Ethiopia. Four containers with four replicate water samples were collected from a Mekelle canal and one was enriched with Nitrogen (N), one with phosphorous (P), one with both nutrients, one control without any nutrients added. Data on primary production and physiochemical properties of canal water were analyzed using one-way ANOVA with R-software. The result shows that the effect of N and P input on primary production and physiochemical properties of the mesocosm experiment were statistically significant. In particularly, Nitrogen was the limiting factor in the net primary production, periphyton, pH and dissolved oxygen of the water. According to the result of this experiment, it is important to do further investigation for better understanding the effect of nutrient input on an aquatic ecosystem.

keywords: Mekelle; Eutrophication; Mesocosm; Nutrient; Primaryproduction; Physiochemical properties