Enriching the Sea to Death
- Bottom living bacteria that digest this dead plant matter consume oxygen.
- Coastal areas are vulnerable to oxygen depletion b/c freshwater draining into the ocean from rivers and streams ten to float on top of denser saltwater.
- When a polluted bay or estuary remains still for weeks, months, or whole seasons the surface water receives rich nutrients and bathed in sunlight with phytoplankton and other organisms and the bottom layer becomes chocked with dead plant matter which consumers more oxygen as it decomposes below surface entire bays can suffocate.
- Oxygen depletion kills fish and nutrients may cause the toxic phytoplankton to bloom contaminating the shellfish that eat them.
- Fertilizing the coastal waters change life underwater. The mix of phytoplankton may shift in response b/c of changes in nutrient balance. Diatoms need the same amount of silicon as nitrogen cannot benefit the supply of nitrogen goes up but the supply of silicon stays the same.
- Sunlight doesn't shine all the way to the deep waters b/c of the cloud of phytoplankton up top, they shade out grasses and seaweed making it hard for them to grow and continue being the shelter of crabs and young fish. The food chain is broken apart.
- B/c of the population boom farmers have to produce more food and fertilize their crops which contain nitrogen and phosphorus, the rain washes these nutrients away sending them into rivers and streams, which continue on to lakes and oceans.
The widespread pollution of Narragansett Bay began with a great celebration on Thanksgiving Day, 1871. For 10 full minutes, the church bells of Providence, R.I., rang out, and a 13-gun salute sounded. The townspeople were giving thanks for the completed construction of their first public water supply. Soon afterward clean water flowed through taps and flush toilets, liberating residents forever from backbreaking trips to the well and freezing visits to the privy. Millions learned the joys of running water between about 1850 and 1920, as towns throughout North America and Europe threw similar parties. But
homeowners gave scant thought to how their gleaming new water closets would
change the makeup of the oceans.
With the wonder of running water came the unpleasant problem of running waste. No longer was human excrement deposited discreetly in dry ground; the new flush toilets discharged streams of polluted water that often flowed through the
streets. Town elders coped with the unhappy turn of events by building expensive networks of sewers, which invariably routed waste to the most convenient body of water nearby. In this way, towns quickly succeeded in diverting the torrent of
waste from backyards and city streets to fishing spots, swimming holes and adjacent ocean shores. In many cases, the results were disastrous for the aquatic environment. And as the flow continues, society still struggles with the repercussions for the plants and animals that inhabit coastal waters.
So what?
- When many marine organisms are deceased, the human population will also be affected by it; therefore it is necessary to keep the nutrients level balance in the ocean.
What if?
- Too much nutrients in large body? Algal blooms will cover most parts of the ocean causing oxygen levels to decrease and other marine organisms rate of survival will also decrease.
Says who?
- Scott W. Nixon
What does this remind me of?
- When the ocean receives too much amount of nutrients, it benefits the phytoplankton, but harmful to other organisms.
- Coastal areas are vulnerable to oxygen depletion b/c freshwater draining into the ocean from rivers and streams ten to float on top of denser saltwater.
- When a polluted bay or estuary remains still for weeks, months, or whole seasons the surface water receives rich nutrients and bathed in sunlight with phytoplankton and other organisms and the bottom layer becomes chocked with dead plant matter which consumers more oxygen as it decomposes below surface entire bays can suffocate.
- Oxygen depletion kills fish and nutrients may cause the toxic phytoplankton to bloom contaminating the shellfish that eat them.
- Fertilizing the coastal waters change life underwater. The mix of phytoplankton may shift in response b/c of changes in nutrient balance. Diatoms need the same amount of silicon as nitrogen cannot benefit the supply of nitrogen goes up but the supply of silicon stays the same.
- Sunlight doesn't shine all the way to the deep waters b/c of the cloud of phytoplankton up top, they shade out grasses and seaweed making it hard for them to grow and continue being the shelter of crabs and young fish. The food chain is broken apart.
- B/c of the population boom farmers have to produce more food and fertilize their crops which contain nitrogen and phosphorus, the rain washes these nutrients away sending them into rivers and streams, which continue on to lakes and oceans.
The widespread pollution of Narragansett Bay began with a great celebration on Thanksgiving Day, 1871. For 10 full minutes, the church bells of Providence, R.I., rang out, and a 13-gun salute sounded. The townspeople were giving thanks for the completed construction of their first public water supply. Soon afterward clean water flowed through taps and flush toilets, liberating residents forever from backbreaking trips to the well and freezing visits to the privy. Millions learned the joys of running water between about 1850 and 1920, as towns throughout North America and Europe threw similar parties. But
homeowners gave scant thought to how their gleaming new water closets would
change the makeup of the oceans.
With the wonder of running water came the unpleasant problem of running waste. No longer was human excrement deposited discreetly in dry ground; the new flush toilets discharged streams of polluted water that often flowed through the
streets. Town elders coped with the unhappy turn of events by building expensive networks of sewers, which invariably routed waste to the most convenient body of water nearby. In this way, towns quickly succeeded in diverting the torrent of
waste from backyards and city streets to fishing spots, swimming holes and adjacent ocean shores. In many cases, the results were disastrous for the aquatic environment. And as the flow continues, society still struggles with the repercussions for the plants and animals that inhabit coastal waters.
So what?
- When many marine organisms are deceased, the human population will also be affected by it; therefore it is necessary to keep the nutrients level balance in the ocean.
What if?
- Too much nutrients in large body? Algal blooms will cover most parts of the ocean causing oxygen levels to decrease and other marine organisms rate of survival will also decrease.
Says who?
- Scott W. Nixon
What does this remind me of?
- When the ocean receives too much amount of nutrients, it benefits the phytoplankton, but harmful to other organisms.