China Faces Another Massive Algae Bloom as Pollution and Temperatures Rise [VIDEO]

The Chinese city of Qingdao has been hit with a massive algae bloom roughly the size of Connecticut, though whether or not this year's marks the largest ever recorded is not clear.

As a result, officials in the once sleepy fishing village known for its beer have unleashed hundreds of boats and bulldozers in attempt to clear the water. .

As of Monday, workers and volunteers had cleared roughly 19,800 tons of algae, The New York Times reports the local government as saying. According to the BBC, local authorities plan on shipping the algae to a factory where it will be dried and ground to make animal food.

Although valued for its high level of nutrition, as well as an ingredient in fertilizers and biomass energy production, in large quantities the algae can prove dangerous as it decomposes, producing toxic hydrogen sulfide gas that smells like rotten eggs, the Times reported.

Furthermore, the thick carpet on the surface of the water can dramatically affect the ecosystem beneath it, blocking sunlight from entering the ocean and sucking the oxygen from the water and suffocating marine life, according to The Guardian.

Called enteromorpha prolifera, the extensive expanse of the bloom is likely the result of rising temperatures, Quartz reports, as well as a steady supply of nitrogen-rich sewage waste due to the growing population and industry of the area.

However, while the bloom could spell disaster for the city's beach resorts, many of the locals don't appear to mind, choosing to enjoy the water regardless, according to Discovery News.

On the other side of the world, Lake Erie is currently facing an increasingly larger bloom, though NOAA estimates that this year's will not prove as severe as 2011's, which researchers say resulted from a "perfect storm" of high rainfall, warm weather and a high influx of nutrients from chemical fertilizers.

"Algal blooms often follow a massive discharge of phosphates or nitrates into the water, whether its farming, untreated sewage or some kind of industrial plant that is discharging waste into the water," Brenda Parker of the University of Cambridge and EnAlgae Project told The Guardian.

For this reason, many scientists fear that a number of areas, including the Great Lakes and China, may face increasing blooms as current trends continue.