Workshop on Solutions and Approaches for Alleviating Hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico

A growing problem in the Gulf of Mexico is the eutrophication that
results from excessive nutrient flux from the Mississippi and Atchafalaya
Rivers. A result of this nutrient over enrichment is a reduction in dissolved
oxygen in the lower water column and bottom waters. Hypoxic conditions
(where dissolved oxygen is less than 2 parts per million) result and cover
an area of approximately 7,000 square miles of seabed off the Louisiana
coast. The “Dead Zone,” so called because fish, shrimp, and crabs cannot
be caught there, poses a threat to the long-term fishery productive capacity
of the Gulf of Mexico.

Fortunately, steps are being taken to deal with the gulf hypoxia issue.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, through its cooperative Gulf
of Mexico Program, leads a cadre of Federal, State, and nongovernmental
agencies and organizations in reducing excess nutrient flows into gulf
waters. The U.S. Geological Survey is part of this cadre and has assembled
a database related to the monitoring of nutrient levels in the Mississippi
River.

Scientists and managers alike agree that the hypoxia problem cannot be
solved immediately. There is general agreement, however, that actions
taken now should demonstrate that there are means for reducing nutrient
loading within the Mississippi River Basin and other coastal rivers whose
catchments increasingly suffer from urbanization and eutrophication.