As if the health of our families is not important enough, here is another example of how the use of natural cleaning supplies can help save the world.

I think we would all agree that the cleanliness of our lakes and streams is of the utmost importance to not only to enjoy recreationally, but also as a functional use to water our crops and provide us with drinking water. One major threat to the cleanliness and safety of our water is the increased problem of Algal Blooms. These blooms have become an ever increasing national public concern due to the adverse affects on the health of people and marine organisms. These blooms can get so bad to the point where it starts to affect the food-web, which if disrupted enough, could lead to a collapse of the food chain all together.

So what exactly are harmful algal blooms (HABs)? According to NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), “Harmful algae blooms (HABs) are microscopic, single-celled plants that live in the sea. HABs is a term used to describe a proliferation, or “bloom,” of single-celled marine algae called phytoplankton. Most species of algae or phytoplankton are not harmful and serve as the energy producers at the base of the food web. While there are thousands of algae species in existence, only a few dozen are known to be toxic. These few toxic species produce potent neurotoxins that can be transferred through the food web where they affect and even kill the higher forms of life such as zooplankton, shellfish, fish, birds, marine mammals, and even humans that feed either directly or indirectly on them.”

So as we can see, HABs are a real threat and something that needs to be stopped. So how exactly do we help prevent the proliferation of these dangerous HABs?

While algae is a naturally occurring organism that does help support the cycle of life, too much of anything can be harmful. These algae blooms are essentially just the result of algae growing at an out of control rate, much higher than if there were no outside forces affecting if. One of the contributing factors to this steady increase in HABs is the use of phosphates in our toxic cleaning products. When these cleaning products are washed down the drain or disposed of in landfills, the phosphates in the cleaners find their way to our water systems including rivers and lakes. Once introduced into the water sources, these phosphates are gobbled up as an additional source of food for the algae. This increases the number of algae and can result in an HAB. These HABs can then lead to eutrophication. Eutrophication happens when this large amount of algae eventually dies. The huge number of dead algae is then decomposed by anaerobic bacteria which can greatly reduce the oxygen levels in the water. It is then very possible that the oxygen levels in the water decrease to a level where fish and other water borne organisms actually die off due to insufficient oxygen. This can end up being a vicious cycle that completely destroys the given body of water.

These terrible consequences of using phosphates need to be taken into account when choosing our cleaning supplies. Although phosphates are only a part of the problem, if we can reduce our phosphate pollution through the use of green cleaning supplies, we can at least start to make an impact on this negative effect. Choosing to use environmentally friendly cleaning supplies over the traditional toxic cleaners in use today is just one easy step we can all take to reduce our negative impact on our environment.

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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mose_Cagen http://EzineArticles.com/?Another-Reason-to-Use-Natural-Cleaning-Supplies—Phosphates&id=2867051

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