You’ve probably seen an algae bloom at some point. Maybe the surface of your neighborhood lake or the edge of the local river is covered in a thick, green slime – that’s algae.
Hopefully, it’s never been quite this intense.
National Geographic compiled a series of photos of some extreme algae blooms that ought to help get the point across. Some blooms are even visible from space! And these aren’t all off in third world countries where environmental laws are still in their infancy. Sadly, many of these are right here in the United States.
Algae blooms are caused by excess nutrients (phosphorous/nitrogen) in the water. These nutrients often come from fertilizer in stormwater runoff, whether it’s from a large farm or your own back yard. When you fertilize without testing your soil, you may end up putting down more than your yard needs and the rest just gets washed off with the stormwater.
When algae blooms form, they can be devastating to aquatic life. The algae can clog fish gills and will suck the oxygen out of the water, essentially suffocating the life underneath the surface. Some types of algae can even be harmful to humans as they release dangerous toxins. Algae blooms also put a damper on recreation (who wants to swim in green slime?) and tourism (boat tours take on a new theme when channeling through algae).
Thankfully, this is one of those incidents where you can do your part to make a difference. Test your soil before fertilizing and consider natural fertilizers such as mulched leaves and grass clippings.
Because when it comes to algae blooms, this is one case where just because it’s green, doesn’t mean it’s “green.”