Between 2008 and 2016, there were mass summer blooms of Enteromorpha in the Yellow Sea, China. They covered an area of thousands of square kilometers annually, lasting an average of 90 days. Remote sensing data, model predictions, and marine environment ecological data measured by ships before, during, and after the Enteromorpha blooms were used in this study of the Qianliyan Island area. Underwater robots survey trepang, wrinkles abalone, and submarine ecological status. We found that the time taken by Enteromorpha to cover the Qianliyan Island area was relevant, as were changes in sea surface temperature (SST). The Enteromorpha made a rise in inorganic nitrogen, reactive phosphate, and heavy metals content in upper, middle, and bottom layers of sea water, dissolved oxygen (DO) and pH were reduced; and there were changes in the dominant animal and plant population. Enteromorpha sedimentation during outbreaks was measured by benthos sampling. Considerable growth in starfish number was obtained by underwater robot observation. All of this directly influenced the regional ecological environment. Numbers of trepang and wrinkles abalone were declined over the years. Global warming and SST anomalies are the two main reasons for frequent marine disasters that take place. National aquatic germ plasm resources of Qianliyan should be protected from the blooms.
Part of the book: Sea Level Rise and Coastal Infrastructure