Alabama Water Quality Information System

— Choose a Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) —


	1.-		Are all injection wells waste disposal wells?


	2.-		Are tarballs from oil spills hazardous to your health?


	3.-		Are the health risks from eating mercury contaminated seafood overstated?


	4.-		Can a gradual warming of the earth affect water pollution associated with blue-green algae, also known as cyanobacteria?


	5.-		Can oil be released from natural sources to the environment?


	6.-		Can the algae blooms associated with “red tides” damage coral reefs?


	7.-		Do most open ocean and coastal oil spills originate from tankers?


	8.-		Do oil spills behave differently on rivers than they do on the open ocean?


	9.-		Does Alabama have a water quality monitoring program for recreational uses of coastal waters?


	10.-		Does global warming contribute to coral morbidity?


	11.-		Does sediment loading due to expansion of agriculture or other development near coastal areas have detrimental impacts on coral reefs?


	12.-		Does spilled oil affect the salt in seawater?


	13.-		Has widespread use of the toxic metal lead (Pb) caused significant pollution problems in the earth's oceans?


	14.-		How are dispersants used in treating oil spills?


	15.-		How are people affecting nearshore waters?


	16.-		How are scientists able to globally survey for toxic chemicals such as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) throughout the earth’s oceans?


	17.-		How can excessive nutrients in coastal waters impact beaches?


	18.-		How can habitat modification impact nearshore waters?


	19.-		How can over-pumping cause salt water intrusion in coastal aquifers?


	20.-		How can pathogens impact nearshore waters?


	21.-		How can people impact the quality of beaches?


	22.-		How can toxic substances impact nearshore waters?


	23.-		How did Caulerpa taxifolia, named killer algae by the French scientist Alexandre Meinesz, spread to other parts of the world?


	24.-		How do excessive nutrients impact nearshore waters?


	25.-		How does excessive sediment impact nearshore waters?


	26.-		How does nearby land development impact beaches?


	27.-		How much does beach water quality monitoring cost?


	28.-		How much oil does it take to create a slick one acre in size on a water surface?


	29.-		How much would it cost to set up a major offshore seawater fish farming operation in the Gulf of Mexico?


	30.-		How serious and extensive is beach pollution in the United States?

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This website was developed by the ACES Water Quality Team, under the leadership of Dr. James E. Hairston. It is funded, in part, by USDA-CSREES water quality grant support under Section 406 of the Agricultural Research, Extension and Education Reform Act of 1998.