The Relationship between Phytoplankton Diversity and Nitrate and Phosphate Content in the Bluru River, Buduran District, Sidoarjo Regency

Abstract

The abundance of phytoplankton depends on the nutrient content in the waters such as nitrate and phosphate content. The concentration of nitrate and phosphate in a water is influenced by the quality of the water and the discharge of waste that enters the river waters. This study aims to determine the diversity of phytoplankton and also the relationship between nitrate and phosphate and the diversity of phytoplankton in the Bluru river. Sampling was taken from three locations, the research was conducted in June - July 2023 on the Bluru river, Buduran District, Sidoarjo Regency. Phytoplankton samples were analyzed using diversity index, uniformity index, dominance index and analysis of nitrate and phosphate content, regression test to determine the relationship between nitrate and phosphate and phytoplankton. The results showed that the highest nitrate and phosphate content was found in location 2 with 0.037 nitrate and 0.049 phosphate. For the phytoplankton diversity index for location 1 with a value of 2.177 it is classified as low, for location 2 with a value of 2.915 it is classified as high diversity, and at location 3 with a value of 2.371 the diversity is classified as moderate. So that the relationship between phytoplankton diversity and nitrate is very strong, illustrating that the nitrate content in the Bluru river contributes to the amount of plankton by 96.0%, while the remaining 4% is influenced by other factors, and for phosphate it also illustrates that the phosphate content in the Bluru river contributes to the amount of plankton is 64% while the remaining 34% is influenced by other factors.

Keywords: Nitrate, Phospate, Phytoplankton