Turbulence and mixing: Sources of nutrients on the Vancouver island continental shelf

Abstract

Estimates of the rate of dissipation of turbulent energy,?_v, were made on the continental shelf off the southwest coast of Vancouver Island throughout the diurnal tidal cycle at six stations. If turbulent mixing takes place away from boundaries, and a constant fraction of the energy supplied to turbulence is converted into potential energy, this dissipation rate per unit volume, ?_v, is shown to be proportional to the rate of turbulent mass and nutrient flux across the isopycnals.

We compute these fluxes to determine the source of nutrients in the upper mixed layer on the shelf. It is found that tidal mixing on the shelf throughout the water column contributes less than 10% of the flux of nutrients supplied by the estuarine outflow out of Juan de Fuca Strait. Strong winds during upwelling events supply nutrients at rates greater than those due to tidal mixing, but at rates that are likely smaller than the Juan de Fuca source. Therefore, the nutrient‐rich waters observed in the euphotic zone in spring and summer on this shelf derive mainly from Juan de Fuca Strait. Nutrients in bottom water derive from upwelling along shelf‐break canyons.