Fertiliser and garden chemicals

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Slow release fertilisers are less likely to go down the stormwater drain
Slow release fertilisers are less likely to go down the stormwater drain

People use many different kinds of fertiliser to help the plants in their garden grow. Sometimes they may spray pests with chemicals to kill them. They may use other chemicals to kill weeds. Farmers use hundreds of tonnes of fertiliser each year to put on the crops they grow. If people use a lot of fertiliser and chemical sprays, these chemicals can get washed into the stormwater or directly into a waterway and end up in the sea.

Fertiliser in the sea encourages the unnatural growth of some algae. When this growth is out of control, some of these algae can poison the water and all the life in it.