By organic material I mean any kind of material that in theory may be found in the food waste, of both of plant and animal origin. I am trying to estimate what fraction of food waste, that if discharged to the marine environment, can act as "fertilizer" for phytoplankton.
Dead bodies of plants & animals both from terrestrial & marine ecosystems will be converted by saprotrophs into nutrients. Faecal matter of animals, metabolic wastes also add to organic load of marine environment.
Depends to a degree upon the type of waste product (animal or plant origin). Degraded proteins from animal products will produce certain nitrogenous compounds including ammonia and urea, both compounds can be readily utilised by phytoplankton.
Degradation of food wastes will also be potentially high in nitrogen (Kjeldhahl) and phosphorous, which again could stimulate primary production if discharged to sea.
See this report
http://www.wrapcymru.org.uk/sites/files/wrap/Technical_report_food_waste_characterisation_Wales_2009x2.9086.pdf
Besides urine and excrements, sewage outfalls could contain a large amount of agricultural and aquaculture chemicals. E.g. common organic fertilizers used in aquaculture are poultry, cow and pig dung but cottonseed meal, rice straw and other agricultural waste products can also be used. All these chemical compounds are very rich in phosphate and nitrate and play a major role in the phytoplankton blooming whenever the environmental conditions are favorable.
Practically all dead bodies of both plants and animals, as well as bacteria masses are very rich with both nitrogen as well as phosphorus in available for phytoplanktob forms.
Shrimp wastes (from residual feed) can be a good source of phyto fertilizer
All kinds of organic waste,agricultural and some industrial effluents released into water contain nitrogen and phosphorus compounds which can be absorbed by phytoplankton.
Pollen is very important.It may constitute approx. 50% yearly external P input to the lakes and it increases the plankton productivity:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/242084628_Coupling_of_boreal_forests_and_lakes_Effects_of_conifer_pollen_on_littoral_communities
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237079956_How_pollen_organic_matter_enters_freshwater_food_webs
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/230616379_Food_quality_of_anemophilous_plant_pollen_for_zooplankton
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236884516_Effects_of_pollen_leaching_and_microbial_degradation_on_organic_carbon_and_nutrient_availability_in_lake_water
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0004698189905568
Kind regards,
Michał Filipiak
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