stephen king had nuthin on these Dead Zones

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UNEP Warns Of Growth Of Ocean "Dead Zones"

Oxygen-starved "dead zones" in the oceans that are threatening marine life and the livelihoods of millions of people are now one of the biggest environmental challenges the world faces, the U.N. Environment Program warned today in its global overview report.

 

The Global Environment Outlook Year Book 2003 was released at the opening of the agency's 8th Special Session of the Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum, in Jeju, South Korea.

 

According to experts, the "dead zones," which could be previously found mostly in the Gulf of Mexico and Chesapeake Bay in the United States, are now found in 150 bodies of water, including the Baltic Sea, Black Sea, Adriatic Sea, Gulf of Thailand and Yellow Sea.

 

Excess production of nitrogen in the water is the main cause of lack of oxygen for plants and fish. The nitrogen, usually coming from farm fertilizers, sewage and industrial pollutants, triggers the growth of a microscopic algae known as phytoplankton. The algae consume oxygen to grow, leaving fish and plants suffocated.