Toxic algal blooms are caused by nutrient run off from household and agricultural use of phosphorus-containing compounds such as detergents and fertilisers.
Biological slime formed by these toxic blooms comes from millions of microorganisms combining to create a gooey mass. Algae and “blue-green algae” – actually cyanobacteria – are the culprits, and can form oxygen-inhibiting blooms in lakes, rivers, dams and the ocean. These blooms have played a significant role in the evolution of life. In fact, algae have flourished for 2.7 billion years, and are currently thriving in the conditions created by warming, nutrient-rich waters, at the cost of more complex organisms such as corals and fish. In November 1991, an estimated 1000-kilometre stretch of the Barwon and Darling rivers in New South Wales gained the dubious privilege of hosting the world’s largest recorded blue-green algal bloom. A state of emergency was declared and drinking water had to be brought in to the area. It was reported that from the air it looked “like a long ribbon of pea soup.” http://www.science.org.au/nova/017/017key.htm
Scripps Institution of Oceanography, at UC San Diego, who late last year warned of the “Rise of Slime” due to a combination of climate change, ocean acidification and excess nutrient run off.
