Christchurch Harbour Macronutrients Project weekly spot sampling 2013 - 2014 and boat transects 2014.

(1) University of Portsmouth School of Earth and Environmental Sciences; (2) University of Southampton School of Ocean and Earth Science; (3) National Oceanography Centre, Southampton

As part of the NERC-funded Christchurch Harbour Macronutrients Project scientists from the University of Southampton and the University of Portsmouth sampled two rivers on the south coast of England (U.K.) and their joint estuary on a weekly basis between April 2013 and April 2014. The river sites used were the lowest Environment Agency gauging stations on the Hampshire Avon (Knapp Mill) and the River Stour (Throop), and samples were also taken from the outflow of Christchurch Harbour at low tide on the same dates. A fourth site, Iford Bridge on the River Stour, was added to the project in August 2013. In addition to this, a series of boat transects sampling at 6 stations along the salinity gradient in Christchurch Harbour were undertaken in the summer of 2014 at fortnightly intervals. Samples were analysed for dissolved inorganic and organic nutrients and a multi-sensor sonde was used to measure vertical profiles of temperature, conductivity, salinity, pH, dissolved oxygen concentration, and chlorophyll a concentration at each station.