Does Phytoplankton Bloom Management Provide an Opportunity for Greenhouse Gas Mitigation?

A growing body of evidence indicates that freshwater bodies, particularly eutrophic systems, are significant sources of the greenhouse gases (GHGs) carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), and nitrous oxide (N₂O). Unlike marine environments, freshwater systems are generally shallower and more directly influenced by terrestrial inputs, including nutrient enrichment, organic matter deposition, and steep redox gradients in both the water column and sediments. These conditions promote intense phytoplankton growth, including massive harmful cyanobacterial blooms (HCBs), and stimulate microbial processes that drive GHG production and release. This opinion article examines the biogeochemical mechanisms underlying these emissions and evaluates the potential of mitigation treatments to both enhance carbon sequestration and reduce CH₄ and N₂O emissions. We argue that effective control of HCBs, whether through nutrient load reduction or direct mitigation protocols, would not only provide communities with toxin-free water but also significantly lower GHG emissions from eutrophic waterbodies. As this is an opinion paper rather than a comprehensive review, we intentionally avoided citing widely accepted concepts, since doing full justice to the many excellent contributions across all relevant subfields would not be possible within the scope of this work.