Le Suivi Régional des Nutriments sur le littoral Nord - Pas-de-Calais / Picardie. Bilan de l'année 2003.

The coastal zone of the Nord - Pas de Calais / Picardie showed dysfonctioning patterns of the ecosystem considered to be link to human activities along shores. This results in regular massive development of species, such as the phytoplanktonic seaweed, Phaeocystis sp. which life cycle was partly linked to nutrients availability and consequently to anthropogenic inputs. As part of the evaluation of the influence of continental inputs on the marine environment (nitrates, phosphates, ... ) and on potential eutrophication processes, of the estimation of the efficiency of the sewage treatments plants in the possible elimination of dumpings and in order to establish a long-term survey to follow up the change in coastal waters quality, the regional nutrients monitoring network was implemented by IFREMER in collaboration with the Agence de l'Eau Artois Picardie in 1992. This study deals with the annual report 2003 in terms of evolution of the main physico-chimical parameters characteristic of water masses regarding three transects offshore Dunkerque, Boulognesur-Mer and the Bay of Somme.