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Urban Fertilizer Use and Tampa Bay
The type and amount of lawn and landscape fertilizer you use, as well as when you apply it, can have an impact on the health of Tampa Bay.
Most fertilizers, even organic fertilizers, contain nitrogen and phosphorous, nutrients that are essential to plant growth. But too much nitrogen and phosphorous flowing into waterways can cause harmful algae blooms that lower oxygen levels, turn the water a green or rust color, and lead to fish kills. In fact, excess nitrogen is the number one pollutant in Tampa Bay. Local governments spend millions of dollars each year to remove nitrogen from water bodies through various stormwater treatment methods.
In recent years, cities and counties around Tampa Bay have adopted local ordinances restricting how and when lawn and landscape fertilizer can
be applied.
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