Can polluted stormwater runoff have adverse effects?
  • Sediment can cloud the water and make it difficult or impossible for aquatic plants to grow. Sediment can also destroy aquatic habitats.
  • Excess nutrients can cause algae blooms. When algae die, they sink to the bottom and decompose in a process that removes oxygen from the water. Fish and other aquatic organisms can't exist in water with low dissolved oxygen levels.

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1. What is a watershed?
2. Did you know that watersheds encompass lawns, parking lots and streets?
3. What human activities have effects on watersheds?
4. Did you know that watersheds can also have an effect on human life?
5. Are floods a major event in a watershed?
6. Can watersheds also become dry?
7. Did you know that stormwater produces water for our watersheds? What is stormwater and why does it matter?
8. Is stormwater runoff generated in more urban developed areas?
9. Why is stormwater runoff a problem?
10. Can polluted stormwater runoff have adverse effects?
11. Can pollutants on land reach waterbodies that are miles away?