Hypoxia In South Louisiana

Giving full credit to restricting the Mississippi River as the culprit for loss of wetlands is not accurate. The booming oil and gas exploration of the 1970’s and 1980’s merits a name on the marquee as well. The pipelines and canals used to transport the resources to the outside world placed a great deal of stress on the fragile wetlands. Erosion from the barges in and out of the marshes as well as the salt water allowed into the fresh water, providing a precarious habitat for fresh water species – flora and fauna alike. Plants provide root systems to hold soil in place. Fish and fowl provide an economy for the area. Enter

Iconic Cape Cod Massachusetts is named after the Atlantic Cod. For centuries, this fish has provided food and trade for New Englanders. In this time, there have been several instances of overfishing by humans from the aboriginal era to colonial times but none so drastic as the present conditions of cod fisheries (Jackson, Kirby, Berger, and Bjorndal, 2001). Overfishing is a human induced occurrence where humans are fishing more than a body of water can sustain. In other words, humans are catching more adult fish preventing the existing population from growing to replenish the fish that were caught (Overfishing: A Global Disaster, n.d.). Worldwide, over 80% of the fish stocks are “fully- to over-exploited, depleted, or in a state of collapse” (Overfishing: A Global Disaster, n.d.). The results of this careless behavior has reduced the biodiversity in the Gulf of Maine and landed the Atlantic Cod on the endangered species list as being “vulnerable” (Cod, n.d.). In the neighboring region of Newfoundland, Canada, communities are already feeling the effects of overfishing. In 1992, at the beginning of the fishing season in the Grand Bank region, there were suddenly no more cod. The local economies collapsed and to this day, the region has not quite recovered (Brennan and Withgott, 2005).

One of the most commonly shared beliefs about aquaculture is that it has potential to amplify and transfer disease/parasites to wild fish populations, but strict management practices and guidelines have been utilized and supplemented to ensure that US farming operations mitigate current and potential environmental risks associated with aquaculture (NOAA, 2015). Among these practices are regular diver-led inspections to investigate the integrity of nets and net infrastructure, surveillance cameras and even public webcam feeds that monitor the fish farms and in particular monitor efficient use of feed, regular health inspections in efforts to have a head start on disease prevention and detection, and “comprehensive sanitary and biosecurity programs to prevent the introduction and/or spread of pests or diseases from one farm site/cage to another or into the environment.” (NOAA, 2015). Additionally, movements are being made to stop the spreading of disease and to limit oceanic pollution by containing salmon in solid tanks rather than in netting. “In Washington State, Domsea Farms has launched a land-based, freshwater system to produce coho salmon.” (David Suzuki Foundation, n.d.) This method is not only environmentally sound, but it opens up aquacultural boundaries. By containing fish in these large tanks, there is potential for salmon aquaculture to

The CTDEP collected bottom- dwelling fish and invertebrates and compared the quantity of organisms and number of species with the levels of oxygen in the water. Both of these studies confirmed that severe effects occurred whenever levels of oxygen fell below 2.0 mg/l. Large reductions in the numbers and types of aquatic life present were noted. The lab experiments recorded reductions in both growth and increase in death.

In Louisiana there is also a wetland, many wetlands in fact. According to the article "Wetlands and Habitat Loss" written by Elaine Mao in paragraph eight it says, " The wetlands are also essential to the state’s fishing industry, providing a habitat for fish, shrimp, oysters and crabs. As of 2013, Louisiana’s commercial fishing industry is responsible for 25 percent of all seafood produced in the United States, with the highest production of shrimp, oysters and freshwater fish in the nation. Approximately one in every 70 jobs in the state is related to the fishing industry. The destruction of the wetlands would have disastrous consequences for the economy of the area and the livelihoods of many of Louisiana’s resident." The Florida Everglades is not the only swamp that people depend on.

Get ready to live on boats! The coast is almost gone. Despite Louisiana’s Gulf Coast being such a critical piece to its survival, economy, and culture, the coast is disappearing at alarming rates. The state loses, on average, 25,000 acres per year, which is equal to one football field every 15 minutes. As a result of human actions on Louisiana’s coast, it is disappearing at massive rates and there’s no way for the coast to naturally replenish like it could previously.

THE CHESAPEAKE BAY DEAD ZONES This is an article written by the Daily Press titled "The Chesapeake Bay dead zone this summer worst since 2014". The theme is how marine life can be affected by these dead zones and how we will find a way to fix this issue with the farmers. If we don't find a way to fix how many dead

The dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico is a human problem, like most other disasters. What this means is that once the place thrived and was ecologically balanced, but we tipped the balance slightly and wrecked havoc upon the environment. It has been noted to occur since the 1950’s and is ongoing. The reason that this dead zone occurs is because of a phenomenon known as eutrophication. Eutrophication is when there is an excessive amount of nutrients in a body of water and it causes an abundance of plants to grow. In this case the nearby farms had been using nitrogen in their fertilizers. The nitrogen got carried into the ocean through rain and other forms of

First, a “National Geographic Society”, (2011) article had detailed about a problem called a “ Dead Zone”. Dead zones are caused by the eutrophication of rivers, lakes, and oceans. When there are too many nutrients or too much fertilizer run off in an aquatic area causes something called an “Algae Bloom”. When the algae grows it covers the water's surface preventing sunlight from penetrating the water, which in time prevents aquatic plants from making oxygen and leaves the fish with little air to breathe thus causing a dead zone. Today in the Gulf of Mexico the is a dead zone the size of Connecticut, Connecticut is 5,543 square miles!

Sediment collected from the riverbank as the river flows downstream is also a problem; it increases the turbidity of the river, and this makes it difficult for plants to receive the necessary sunlight needed for survival. When these plants die, there is less food for fish and other river animals. Bacteria levels also rise in the water, because it can cling to sediment very easily. When there is more sediment, there are more places for the bacteria to collect. (Helsel & Mueller, 2009). All of these problems are occurring as the water is flowing along the river banks, collecting even more sediment, and pollutants as it travels downstream and deposits into the Gulf of Mexico. When all of this sediment, nitrogen and bacteria flow into the Gulf of Mexico, it causes changes in the water there. The increase in the level of nitrogen causes plankton to grow faster. When the plankton decomposes it takes a large amount of oxygen out of the water. The bacteria break down the decomposed plankton, which releases carbon dioxide, taking increasing levels of oxygen out of the water in the Gulf. Eventually the level of oxygen decreases to a point where most living organisms cannot survive. Some animals flee while other plants and animals that cannot leave usually die. This is referred to as the Dead Zone in the Gulf of Mexico. (Gulf of Mexico; NOAA, 2009). With an expected increase in the size

Seasonally, the Gulf region experiences eutrophication due to an overload of nutrients in the watershed. Over seventy percent of the nitrogen and phosphorus that ends up in the Gulf of Mexico originates from agriculture. The input of nutrients into the Gulf region causes a massive algal bloom. The algae take up all of the excess nutrients, and then die off. Decomposers then break down the dead organisms and use up all of the oxygen in the water, leaving a dead zone. The lack of oxygen in the water supply kills The anthropocentric approach to agriculture is necessary to be sure we meet the nutritional needs of our citizens,

Idle infrastructures may collapse during brutal storms and cause contamination in gulf waters, damage other active platforms, and create a new navigation route and safety hazards (Decommissioning and Rigs to Reefs in the Gulf of Mexico FAQ). Oppositionists disagree with the current Rigs to Reefs policy, which allows garbage to be sent to the bottom of the ocean floor and proclaimed a “reef”. Artificial reefs do not grow fish populations; they simply collect fish from the surrounding area. This not only encourages overfishing by providing a “one-stop shop” for fishing fleets, but also negatively impacts migrating species of fish by changing feeding and spawning patterns. In regards to the fishing industry, shrimpers need a clear seafloor to run their nets. Giving away the seafloor to artificial reefs violates agreements between the fishing industry, the oil industry, and the government. With thousands of rigs due for decommissioning in the next few years, we can either decide to help restore the Gulf to its former vitality, or allow it to become a “junkyard of epic proportions” (Sharp). If people recognized the major benefits the oil and gas infrastructures offer to the marine life and the fishing industry, they would understand that the “garbage” the Rigs to Reef program is placing in the gulf is in fact the “cornucopia of

In Canada, the Grand Banks habitat is in “environmental degradation” (Connor and Taitano) due to bottom trawlers tearing up the sea floor displacing and destroying the vegetation at the seafloor and therefore disrupting the habitat of the small fish the cod prey upon (Connor and Taitano). Bottom trawls also disrupt the “breeding patterns of the cod.. Damaging fertilized eggs.. And greatly reducing the amount of young born” (Connor and Taitano). In the United States, the Gulf of Maine provides evidence of a loss of the young and old cod due to predation (Connor). Farming atlantic cod, like many fisheries are doing to replenish the atlantic salmon populations, have resulted in a breakout of the disease Yersiniosis (Connor and Taitano).The disease affects the fish’s intestinal tract before spreading throughout its body. The mortality rate with this disease is low, about 5%, however the illness prevents the affected cod from being sold at a market due to health violations (Connor and

According to the NOAA, the northern Gulf of Mexico is the second largest dead zone in the United States. The Gulf of Mexico is officially recognized as a hypoxic, or dead zone, because it has less than 2 ppm dissolved oxygen in accordance to the Microbial Life Education Resource’s website. The source of the gulf’s extensive pollution is from the Mississippi River which captures the runoff of 31 states and then flows right into the gulf, making it a hotspot for extremely high concentrations of sediment, nitrogen, phosphorus, and chemical pollutants (EPA “Gulf of Mexico”). Unfortunately for us, “The Gulf of Mexico is a major source area for the seafood industry…[and] if the hypoxic zone continues or worsens, fishermen and coastal state economies will be greatly impacted” says Monica Bruckner, a professor at Montana State University. This means that there is an economic factor that plays into the pollution of phosphates and there are nearby economies that depend of certain marine harvests to be able to support themselves. Consequently, if all the animals are either dead or have migrated away, then there will be no harvests at all and many companies will become bankrupt and forced to close down, leaving thousands of people unemployed.

One of the largest problems the earth is currently facing, in regards to the ocean environment, is the growth of ocean dead zones. The ocean covers more than two-thirds of the earth’s surface. Dead zones occur all around the world, but an increase can be seen near heavy agricultural and industrial areas (What Causes Ocean "Dead Zones"?, 2012). In 1960 there were 49 known ocean dead zones, now there are 405 dead zones identified worldwide (What Causes Ocean "Dead Zones"? 2012). The dead zones lack oxygen levels during certain times of the year limiting the aquatic animal life in the ocean. This problem isn’t caused by the activity in the ocean, but is caused by the activity on land.