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Nutrient Overload
Heavy rain washes fertilizers from farmland, lawns and yards into storm water drains, streams and rivers, and finally out to sea. Other high-nutrient substances such as dog feces and other pet and farm animal waste, overflowing septic tanks, poorly maintained sewage treatment farms and dead plant material contribute to the problem. The Gulf of Mexico, Long Island Sound, Chesapeake Bay and other U.S. coastal water areas experience yearly algal blooms. In 2008, the Gulf of Mexico dead zone covered about 20,700 square kilometers (8,000 square miles), according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Suffocated Sealife
Oxygen depletion, a major pollution event caused by fertilizers entering oceans, results from algae growing and dying. Algae use fertilizer, sunlight and oxygen to grow. When they run out of fertilizer, they die, and their decomposition also uses up oxygen. Oxygen-depleted water often smells bad. Cyanobacteria are one algae species that causes oxygen depletion. Looking like scum, foam or mats on the water surface, they live in marine, estuarine and fresh water. Although cyanobacteria are commonly called blue-green algae, their blooms can be red, brown, blue, bright green or colorless. Algal blooms also kill other life forms by preventing sunlight from reaching them.
Seafood Sickness
One direct effect of ocean pollution on humans is food poisoning. Karenia brevis is an algae that feeds on fertilizers washed into the ocean, forming red or brown algal blooms called red tides. Shellfish that eat this algae become contaminated with chemicals called brevetoxins, which cause neurotoxic shellfish poisoning in humans. Another algae responsible for food poisoning is Gambierdiscus toxicus. Fish that eat this algae, such as king mackerel, barracuda, hogfish, blackfin snapper and yellowfin grouper, cause ciguatera poisoning. Symptoms of both types of poisoning include tingling fingers and toes, and gastrointestinal upset. Ciguatera poisoning also sometimes causes sufferers to feel hot things are cold, and vice versa. Medical practitioners can treat neurotoxic shellfish and ciguatera poisoning.
Ocean Preservation
Responsible use of fertilizers reduces ocean pollution. Don't fertilize your lawn or yard if rain is forecast, and don't overwater after fertilizing, so that the feed is washed out of the soil. Always store fertilizer in sealed containers under cover. Keep fertilizing to a minimum, always follow the directions on the label closely and don't fertilize at all near storm drains, ditches or gutters. Maintain your septic tank so that it never overflows, and clean up after your dog on walks.