Using major nutrient concentrations to derive vertical movement of water masses in the coastal region of eastern Taiwan

Significant variations of phosphate and silicate concentrations have been observed in seawater from selected industrial pipelines at intake depths between 400 and 710 m off the Hualien coast, eastern Taiwan, revealing a strong vertical movement of water mass in this intermediate layer. An intensive monitoring experiment was carried out, in which pipeline seawater from three land-based pumping stations and seawater collected by a research vessel were obtained and analyzed in parallel during a 2-day observation period. The results showed clearly that the changes of nutrient concentrations in both pipeline and shipboard samples followed a semidiurnal cycle. The maximum vertical displacement occurred in the 300–800 m layer with a scale as surprisingly large as 100 m, when compared with that observed in other areas. The tidal cycles for different layers may not synchronize with surface tide or each other. Empirical equations have been implemented between nutrient concentrations and temperature for the Hualien off-shore area. The equation can be used to check temperature variation of the intermediate water by measuring either phosphate or silicate in pipeline seawater.