Fertilizer run-off grows Gulf dead zone
Researchers say more intensive farming of more land in the Midwestern U.S.—in part a result of the push for more corn production for ethanol—could contribute to growth in the "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico.
The zone is created when fertilizer and other runoff find their way down the Mississippi River and into the gulf, encouraging algae to grow. The algae's decay process sucks up all the available oxygen, leaving little for other species such as fish. In 2006, the dead zone was 6,662 square miles.
Source:
BBC,
Gristmill.