The more phosphorus there is in the Baltic, the more active blue-green algae are. They bloom over wide areas, consuming all the oxygen, and turning large parts of the seabed into dead zones. Fish and other living things of the Baltic Sea suffer from the heavy impact of the algae.
The biomass of the blue-green algae in their blooming period is shown in the figure below. For example, in August 2010, in order to export all the algae from the Gulf of Finland, one would need 200,000 fully loaded ten-ton trucks!
Scientists are panicking: little time remains before the changes in the unique ecosystem of the Baltic Sea become irreversible. The Baltic subspecies of the gray seal are already under threat of extinction, as well as the Baltic subspecies of the ringed seal and various species of fish and birds. Read more
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