oxygen depletion
Suffocating water phenomenon
Oxygen depletion is the reduction of oxygen levels in an environment—typically water or air—to the point where organisms struggle to survive.
In aquatic ecosystems, it often results from algal blooms that consume oxygen as they decompose: Fertilizer runoff caused oxygen depletion in the lake, killing thousands of fish.
The term also applies to enclosed spaces where combustion or respiration exhausts breathable air.
- dead zonesAreas lacking life or signal
- anoxiaAbsence of oxygen supply
- hypoxiaInsufficient tissue oxygenation
- harmful algal bloomsToxic aquatic microorganism outbreaks
- eutrophicationExcess nutrients depleting oxygen
algal bloom · water pollution · siltation · coastal waters · cyanobacteria · fish kills · mass die-off · suffocation · gasping for air · breath of life · stratification · smothering · organic matter · carbon dioxide · airless · drowning · desaturation · decay
- depletiondecline, deficit, shortage, exhaustion, overconsumption
- lake phenomenaalgae bloom, ice out, turnover, stratification, lake effect snow
- Mining Hazardscave-in, collapse, explosion, methane, gas explosion
- ocean threatscoral bleaching, overfishing, acidification, oil spills, plastic waste
- pollution effectsdead zones, fish kills, algal blooms, eutrophication, waterborne illness
- water pollutionsewage, industrial waste, contaminants, algal bloom, toxic waste
oxygen, depleted, depletion, depleting, oxygenate, oxygenation, oxygenated, oxygenator, oxygenating