Thomas Bianchi and Elise Morrison’s article in AUG’s EOS addresses the need to establish aquatic critical zones (ACZ’s) and understand how human manipulation of the surface through canals, dammed reservoirs, irrigation ditches, and pollution effects species diversity, microbial communities, and nutrient levels in aquatic zones across the planet. Through this research, they hope to get a full picture of the extent of the Anthropocene and understand how these changes will continue into the future as climate change.
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