Source: Save Barnegat Bay
You can help Save Barnegat Bay by not fertilizing, according to the local environmental group by that name.
Save Barnegat Bay has launched a Barnegat Bay Fertilizer Challenge aimed at reducing nutrient pollution entering the bay.
The initiative seeks to reduce excess nitrogen that flows into the bay from the overuse of chemical fertilizers, according to the group's website.
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"These excess chemicals are directly responsible for the abundance of algae & sea nettles (jellyfish) and contribute to the overall murkiness of our once beautiful bay waters!" the website states.
Nitrogen carried by runoff and groundwater to the bay overfeeds large and small algae, which crowd out healthy species such as clams, scallops, eelgrass and crabs, according to the website. When algae dies, it uses up a tremendous amount of oxygen, impairing marine life.
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Lawns are a greater source of excess nitrogen to Barnegat Bay than parking lots, the website states. And if you live anywhere in Ocean County, runoff or groundwater flows toward streams, creeks and rivers feeding the Barnegat Bay watershed. The watershed includes all of Ocean County and much of southern Monmouth County.
It would be an enormous step in the right direction if everyone stopped fertilizing, the website says. Fertilizers are one of the largest sources of nitrogen. Fossil fuels and overdevelopment are other examples.
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Under the challenge, according to Save Barnegat Bay:
- You can make your yard bay-friendly and set an example for your neighbors. A free Low Maintenance Landscape Guide is available in print or online.
- Your lawn can get the necessary amount of nitrogen without fertilizer through rain, clover and soil.
- You can have a Smart Yard and Clean Bay without using commercial fertilizers.
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- Beautiful, native plants can substitute for lawn space. They stay healthy without fertilizing and watering and could divide your yard into beautiful, enjoyable sections. The deep roots of native plants help the bay by removing nitrogen from groundwater before it can reach the bay to become food for algae.
- Stone yards do nothing to remove the nitrogen in rainfall. Unfertilized plantings are better and planted yards need zero herbicides.
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- Tell your organic lawn care specialist not to fertilize, but they generally don’t do much fertilizing. They do things like composting, which helps lead to your lawn having soil. Most people who get organic lawn care need it for only two or three years because they have self-sustaining soil after that.
- The lawn care service industry won't be hurt if they can meet the challenge of keeping lawns attractive without fertilizing.
- You will save money by not fertilizing.
