LAT, part 3 of 5, "Altered Oceans": DARK TIDES, ILL WINDS

[DeepModem Mom]

ALTERED OCEANS
DARK TIDES, ILL WINDS
With sickening regularity, toxic algae blooms are invading coastal waters. They kill sea life and send poisons ashore on the breeze, forcing residents to flee.
By Kenneth R. Weiss, Times Staff Writer
August 1, 2006

Harmful algae blooms have occurred for ages. Some scientists theorize that a toxic bloom inspired the biblical passage in Exodus: " … all the water in the Nile turned into blood. And the fish in the Nile died, and the Nile stank, so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile. There was blood throughout all the land of Egypt."

What was once a freak of nature has become commonplace. These outbreaks, often called red tides, are occurring more often worldwide, showing up in new places, lasting longer and intensifying.

They are distress signals from an unhealthy ocean. Overfishing, destruction of wetlands, industrial pollution and climate change have made the seas inhospitable for fish and more advanced forms of life and freed the lowliest — algae and bacteria — to flourish.

A scientific consensus is emerging that commercial agriculture and coastal development, in particular, promote the spread of harmful algae. They generate runoff rich in nitrogen, phosphorous and other nutrients that sustain these microscopic aquatic plants. In essence, researchers say, modern society is force-feeding the oceans with the basic ingredients of Miracle-Gro....

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/oceans/la-me-ocean1aug01,0,7088530,full.story

[NotGivingUp]

1. Every time I'd read about red tide in the "news"paper, they'd make it

sound like it's just a natural occurence...not a problem...yeh, right.