Farmers, foresters, homeowners, and business people can pollute water by improperly using chemical fertilizers.
Farmers, foresters, homeowners, and business people can pollute water by improperly using chemical fertilizers.
For example, in urban areas, homeowners often apply more than the recommended amounts of fertilizer to lawns, gardens, and flowers. Farmers applying too much manure or fertilizer at the wrong time can cause similar problems. For instance, it is not good to apply fertilizer during the rainy season. After heavy rains, fertilizer can wash into rivers and lakes and supply the aquatic plants with too many nutrients. As a result, algae can multiply faster and cause algae blooms. Algae blooms can reduce the supply of oxygen in the water because oxygen is required for algae respiration and growth. This can deplete the supply of dissolved oxygen in the water.