What is the primary environmental process that occurs when excessive nutrients (such as nitrogen and phosphorus), usually from agricultural runoff or sewage, stimulate dense growth of plant life (algal blooms) in a water body, ultimately leading to the depletion of dissolved oxygen and the creation of coastal ‘dead zones’?
💡 Explanation:
Eutrophication is the process of nutrient enrichment, which leads to excessive plant and algae growth. When this organic matter decomposes, it consumes vast amounts of oxygen, resulting in hypoxia (very low oxygen levels) or anoxia, creating aquatic 'dead zones' where most marine life cannot survive.
