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(Reuters Washington, 14th)
Scientists today pointed out that "dead zones" in coastal waters, areas where the oxygen levels on the seabed are so low that most organisms cannot survive, are expanding globally at an alarming rate.
According to a study published in the journal "Science," the cause of this phenomenon is the nitrogen and phosphorus from chemical agricultural fertilizers, which flow from farmland into rivers and are carried into the ocean. The burning of fossil fuels, especially emissions from power plants and vehicles, also enters the soil and eventually discharges into coastal waters.
In this decade alone, the number of "dead zones" in global coastal waters has increased by about 30% to 405, scattered along the coasts of the United States, Europe, and other regions, totaling an area of 95,000 square miles (250,000 square kilometers).
Researchers say the largest single "dead zone" is in the Baltic Sea, covering an area of 30,000 square miles (80,000 square kilometers). Central News Agency (translation)
Source: http:/ / tw. news. yahoo. com/ art……url/ d/ a/ 080815/ 16/ 144w4. html
Global Ocean 'Dead Zones' Expanding, Scientists Warn
Scientists today pointed out that "dead zones" in coastal waters, areas where the oxygen levels on the seabed are so low that most organisms cannot survive, are expanding globally at an alarming rate.
According to a study published in the journal "Science," the cause of this phenomenon is the nitrogen and phosphorus from chemical agricultural fertilizers, which flow from farmland into rivers and are carried into the ocean. The burning of fossil fuels, especially emissions from power plants and vehicles, also enters the soil and eventually discharges into coastal waters.
In this decade alone, the number of "dead zones" in global coastal waters has increased by about 30% to 405, scattered along the coasts of the United States, Europe, and other regions, totaling an area of 95,000 square miles (250,000 square kilometers).
Researchers say the largest single "dead zone" is in the Baltic Sea, covering an area of 30,000 square miles (80,000 square kilometers). Central News Agency (translation)
Source: http:/ / tw. news. yahoo. com/ art……url/ d/ a/ 080815/ 16/ 144w4. html