Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone Smaller Than Expected

Good news doesn’t come as often as we’d like nowadays, so it’s nice to be able to report that this year’s Gulf of Mexico dead zone isn’t nearly as large as experts thought it would be. NOAA-sponsored forecast models predicted that it would be bigger than usual at 7,000 – 8,000 square miles, but the actual size is about 3,000 square miles.

However, the change in square miles doesn’t mean it’s any less severe than usual. In fact, it’s worse. This year’s dead zone is “unusually thick”, reaching from the ocean floor almost to the surface of the water. And the smaller size doesn’t mean that the amount of pesticide-laden runoff that causes the dead zone in the first place has decreased.

From PhysOrg, via Treehugger:

“The results of the 2009 cruise at first glance are hopeful, but the smaller than expected area of hypoxia appears to be related to short-term weather patterns before measurements were taken, not a reduction in the underlying cause, excessive nutrient runoff.” said Robert Magnien, PhD., director of NOAA’s Center for Sponsored Coastal Ocean Research. “The smaller area measured by this one cruise, therefore, does not represent a trend and in no way diminishes the need for a harder look at efforts to reduce nutrient runoff.”

The average size of the dead zone over the past five years, including this cruise, is now 6,000 square miles. The interagency Gulf of Mexico/Mississippi River Watershed Nutrient Task Force has a goal to reduce or make significant progress toward reducing this dead zone average to 2,000 square miles or less by 2015. The Task Force uses a five year average due to relatively high interannual variability.

The solution is reducing fertilizer use on farms along the Mississippi River. When too much fertilizer is applied, the excess runs off into the river and is carried all the way to the Gulf, depriving the waters of oxygen and making them unlivable for most marine life. Treehugger reports that one proposed solution is crop biodiversity, which would cut down on the need for chemicals on farms.

Link [Phys Org] via [Treehugger]
Photo credit: NOAA

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