Aquatic Life:

All forms of living things found in water, ranging from

bacteria to fish and rooted plants, insect larva and zooplankton are
included in aquatic life.

Impact of chemicals on aquatic life:

Already two-thirds of aquatic life is considered to
be an endangered species because of improperly disposed of chemicals
and other waste. Different chemicals are present in waste, when it rains
those chemicals are washed into river which feeds the waterfall and
then goes into the ocean. When a toxic waste harms one organism, it
can end up destroying an entire food chain of aquatic life. Improperly
disposed chemicals pollute aquatic life and kills sea mammals, corals
and fish.
Different chemicals that effect aquatic life are following:

Nonylphenol:
Nonylphenol, a chemical found in detergents, is
thought to mimic estrogens compounds, reducing reproduction in
aquatic organisms.

Triclopyr:
In the water draining levels of the weed killer triclopyr are
typically below concentration. If misapplied triclopyr can harm fish and
other aquatic species.

PCDD:
 Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins harm reproduction and
development in fishes. Dioxins built up in food chain and may affect
people and animals that eat fish.

PBDE flame retardants:

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers flame retardants can
affect the development, reproduction and survival of many species
including fishes.

Petroleum related compounds:

These are mixtures of many different
chemicals and are toxic to algae and invertebrates. These compounds
can poison fish at all life stages and kill their eggs and larva.

PAHs:
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the bottom sediments can
cause tumors in marine flatfish and can cause heart defects in
developing embryos of herring and other fish specis.

Zinc:
Zinc can kill young salmon as they swim out of their nest gravel. In
high enough concentrations, zinc can kill many adult fish species.

Mercury:
Mercury is very toxic. When it rains airborne mercury deposits
back on the land and water bodies. Some mercury is converted into
methyl-mercury , a highly stable compound that contaminates our
water and aquatic life. The methylmercury concentrates up the food
chain especially in certain fish where it can affect the health of people
who eat them.
Cadmium:
Cadmium can be acutely toxic in aquatic life. Shellfish can
concentrate cadmium in levels that harmful to people who eat them.

Copper:
Copper interfere with salmons sense of smell , which reduces
their ability to avoid predators find their way back to their birthplace to
spawn , and find mates.

Ways of input of chemicals:

There are five main types of input of chemicals into oceans.
1) Direct discharge of waste into oceans
2) Runoff into the water due to rain
3) Ship pollution
4) Atmospheric pollution
5) Deep sea mining

Direct discharge:
Chemicals enter rivers and sea directly from urban
sewerage and industrial waste discharge, sometimes in form of
hazardous and toxic wastes. Inland mining of copper and gold is
another source of aquatic pollution.

Surface Run-off:
Surface runoff from farming as well as urban runoff and
runoff from construction of roads, buildings, ports, channels and
harbours can carry soil and particles laden with carbon, nitrogen,
phosphorus and minerals which can cause algal blooms which have the
potential to create hypoxic conditions by using all available oxygen.

Ships pollution:
Oil spills can have devastating effects. While being
toxic to aquatic life PAHs the components in crude oil are very difficult
to clean up and last for years in sediments and marine environment.

Atmospheric pollution:
Wind blown dust and debris, including plastic bags
are blown seawards from landfills and other areas.

Deep sea mining:

The deposits in oceans are mined using either
hydraulic pumps or bucket systems that take ore to the surface to be
processed result in the disturbance to the benthic layer increased
toxicity of water column.

Human impact:
Eutrophication:
An increase in chemical nutrients typically
compound containing nitrogen or phosphorus in an ecosystem. It can
result in an increase in the ecosystem primary productivity (excessive
plant growth and decay) and further effects including lack of oxygen
and severe reduction in water quality, fish and other animal
populations.

Acidification:
 The oceans are normally a natural carbon sink,
absorbing carbon dioxide from atmosphere. Because the level of
atmospheric carbon dioxide are increasing the ocean are becoming ore
acidic.

Other toxins:
. There are particular problems with other toxins that do
no disintegrate rapidly in aquatic environment.
Example of persistent toxins are PCBs, DDT, pesticides, furans,
dioxins, phenols and radioactive wastes.
. Heavy metals are metallic chemicals that have a
relatively high density and are toxic or poisonous at low concentrations.
Examples are mercury, lead, nickel, arsenic and cadmium. Such
toxins can accumulate in the tissues of many species of aquatic life in a
process called bioaccumulation.