The Yellow Sea in front of Chinese city of Qingdao is covered by a gigantic carpet of algae which looks like a juicy spring meadow from the distance.
This algae plague stinks like hell and spreads over 20,000 and 30,000 square kilometers. Nonetheless, people are still having a bath (or better said an ‘algae bath’).
The cause of this algal bloom is probably a mix of different factors such as: unfiltered effluents and fertilizers and huge offshore red algae farms (important part of Japanese cuisine).
The green stuff is completely non-toxic for humans. But the algae carpet can dramatically change the ecosystem by blocking the sunlight and use up the oxygen, thus removing the basis of life for many marine animals and plants.