It is common for people to want green, pretty looking grass on their land. Over fertilized grass leads to red tide also known as karenia brevis that comes from a microscopic organism called algae. It is commonly found in bodies of water from ponds to the ocean. The algae blooms are harmless unless they grow out of control, then a neurotoxin expels from the enlarged group of decaying algae causing the water to turn a shade of red. A cause of the red tide outbreak that could be controlled is pollutant runoff from fertilizers used in commercial and urban communities. When the fertilizer runs off into the drains and goes into the sea, then it becomes problematic and creates a red tide. Red tide and its effects cannot be stopped but it can be weakened by cutting back on the fertilizer use.
An effect of red tide is that it takes all the oxygen out of the water so the fish either leave or die. Another effect is that the toxins spread through the air, and anyone too close to the ocean affected by red tide could get sick. If they were exposed to the toxins for too long especially, for people with respiratory issues, they could be sent to the hospital. EPA's New England Regional Laboratory, 40 to 60 percent of the nitrogen that people put on their lawns through fertilizer winds up in "surface and groundwater" (Mooney 2015). To slow these effects of red tide, the use of fertilizer on private and commercial lawns needs to be regulated. Instead, once every two weeks, people can fertilize their lawns once a month and adjust the amount of nitrogen in the fertilizer that goes on the lawns.
Over watering and fertilizing can have some consequences for the environment and the lawn itself. "Every year across the country, lawns consume nearly 3 trillion gallons of water a year, 200 million gallons of gas (for all that mowing), and 70 million pounds of pesticides" (NRDC). Taking too much care of lawns and fields of grass can cause some consequences. Over fertilized grass can lead to lawn burn, which kills your grass as fast as it grows. A University of Florida study shows that a growing amount of research suggests that people fertilize and over-fertilize their lawns in significant part out of a sense of what those who live around them expect their lawns to look like (Bayles). It is a lose-lose situation, if regulations were put on fertilizer then the grass would be just as green, maybe even more green and healthier because not as much fertilizer burns on lawns. According to the Washington Post, a growing amount of research suggests that people fertilize and over-fertilize their lawns in significant part out of a sense of what those who live around them expect their lawns to look like. Also there would not be an excess amount of runoff making the toxic algae growth go from uncontrollable to manageable.
Perfect green lawns are a symbol for a nice healthy environment. Robert Weisberg, a professor of physical oceanography at the University of South Florida "This further demonstrates that the ocean circulation is the major determinant of Florida's Karenia brevis harmful algae blooms, dispelling the myth that land-based fertilizers are to blame" (Weisberg). Everyone wants to have nice trimmed green grass in private residences, industries and farms, so society would think that they are a healthy individual or company. People tend to trust neighborhoods that have urban landscapes rather than those who do not or buy more from the company that has a nice field of grass then a company that does not. This may be perceived to be true but people usually only think of the social impact of fertilized lawns and not the environmental impact. In reality, society is polluting the ocean by expecting companies or neighborhoods to have and keep green grass.
Most people see green lawns as a sign of stability in life, family or financially. That is why people love looking at beautiful houses with perfectly kept green lawns, and maybe they love it just a bit too much. Adding more to the already high recommended amount of fertilizer will not make the grass grow stronger and healthier, in the end it will only hurt the grass with lawn burn and add fuel to the fire, that is red tide. If we had regulations on one of the causes of red tide, the decrease in pollutant runoff would have an impact on the next Karenia brevis or red tide outbreak. People love green lawns but to what extent, for the beautiful ocean to fall into ruins.
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My Short Essays
Short StoryThese are just short essays I wrote for school. I thought it would be fun to publish them.
