Toxic Chemical Contamination

Habitats Affected:

Water column, shell bottom, SAV, soft bottom, ocean hard bottom

Common Sources:

Herbicides, pesticides, and other toxic chemicals from agriculture, golf courses, urban development, marinas, fuels, automobile transportation, boating activity, and industrial emissions

Impacts:

• Heavy metals, petroleum products, and other toxins can kill sensitive shellfish larvae, or lower reproductive success and growth, impacting shell bottom habitat.
• Toxins can accumulate in soft bottom, resulting in mortality or poor recruitment of benthic invertebrates or bio-accumulate in the tissue of top predators.
• SAV can be intentionally or unintentionally killed by spraying for aquatic nuisance plant control. See Introduced and Nuisance species for related information.

Go back to Threats to Coastal Fish Habitat (Overview Chart)…