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A study published in the journal Science Thursday found that there are a growing number of areas in oceans around the world where there are low levels of oxygen. Researchers say these are damaging marine ecosystems. One of the biggest of these areas in the U.S. is in Long Island Sound.

These areas are known as “dead” zones because without oxygen aquatic animals will die. When nutrients, such as nitrogen or phosphorus get into the water from sewage overflows and waste water treatment plants, they act like fertilizer causing algae to grow excessively. When microbes consume the algae they use up a lot of oxygen, driving away fish, crabs and lobsters. Robert Diaz of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science has found that the number of dead zones in the world increased by about a third between 1995 and 2007.

“We found that this was a growing problem and covering vast areas of our coastal zones that historically have been the primary fishing grounds for many of our species. So we felt that we should write a review of this and try and make people aware that this is more than a local problem that I know is a big issue there in Long Island Sound, but it’s a global problem and it seems to be growing every year, in terms of the area of the seafloor that’s being affected."

In the U.S., besides Long Island Sound, there are large dead zones in the Gulf of Mexico, Lake Erie, and Chesapeake Bay. The problem gets worse in the summer when the water heats up and the ecosystems go into a kind of over drive.