![\"\"](\"https:\/\/site.uvm.edu\/mcintosh_pontius_links\/files\/2023\/06\/Gulf-of-Mexico.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nThe Problem<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The GOM suffers from <\/a>hypoxia<\/a> <\/a>(water containing < 2 mg\/L DO) that occurs most frequently during warm months<\/p>\n\n\n\n The worst hypoxia<\/a> <\/a>event to date in the Gulf<\/a> <\/a>occurred in the summer of 2017,<\/a> covering 22,729 km2<\/sup>, an area about the size of New Jersey,<\/p>\n\n\n\n The impact of Dead Zone formation<\/a> <\/a>on the Gulf\u2019s ecosystem can be devastating<\/p>\n\n\n\n It’s important to stress that, in addition to the environmental impacts that result from N movement into the GOM, the <\/a>economic toll<\/a> <\/a>resulting from hypoxic conditions, including the loss of commercial fisheries and tourism, can also be devastating. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Fertilizers have been identified as<\/a> <\/a>being particularly important<\/a>,<\/a> (Figure 4.2), with 52% of the N moving into the Gulf estimated to originate from the use of fertilizers on corn and soybean<\/a> <\/a>crops alone (Alexander et al. 2008). <\/p>\n\n\n\n Surges in stormwater runoff<\/a> <\/a>following spring rains often coincide with the timing of fertilizer application. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Scientists believe that projected climatic changes will worsen the prevalence and impacts of<\/a> <\/a>Dead Zones<\/a>.<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n Changes in the frequency and intensity of precipitation events are also linked to increased N runoff<\/a>.<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n As atmospheric CO2<\/sub> levels continue to rise, some crops may <\/a>increase their productivity<\/a>,<\/a> resulting in an increased need for fertilizer application<\/p>\n\n\n\n Increased precipitation projected to occur in the MRB will also lead to increased<\/a> <\/a>N loss<\/a> <\/a>from soils through leaching<\/a>.<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n For instance, to tackle this problem at its source, the Gulf of<\/a> <\/a>Mexico Hypoxia Task Force<\/a> <\/a>has evaluated a wide range of strategies to reduce nutrient pollution, including market-based incentives for wetland restoration, home septic system improvements, planting of cover crops, and better stormwater management<\/p>\n\n\n\n Buffer strips:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The multifunctional roles of vegetated strips around and within<\/a> <\/a>agricultural field<\/a>s<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Drainage water recycling:<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Questions and Answers about Drainage Water Recycling for<\/a> <\/a>the Midwest <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Constructed wetlands: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Constructed Treatment Wetlands<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n 1.3.1 Small Group Guided Worksheets<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Additional sources:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Buffer strips: Vegetation Buffer Strips in Agricultural Areas (chisagocountymn.gov)<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Constructed wetlands: (PDF) The Use of Constructed Wetlands to Mitigate Pollution<\/a> <\/a>from Agricultural Runoff (researchgate.net)<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Drainage water recycling: Drainage Water Recycling <\/a>\u2013 <\/a>Transforming Drainage<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Movement of excessive amounts of nitrogen (N) through the Mississippi River Basin (MRB) into the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) has been linked to the annual formation of a Dead Zone, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1574,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-47","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.uvm.edu\/mcintosh_pontius_links\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/47","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.uvm.edu\/mcintosh_pontius_links\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.uvm.edu\/mcintosh_pontius_links\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.uvm.edu\/mcintosh_pontius_links\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1574"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.uvm.edu\/mcintosh_pontius_links\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=47"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/site.uvm.edu\/mcintosh_pontius_links\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/47\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":51,"href":"https:\/\/site.uvm.edu\/mcintosh_pontius_links\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/47\/revisions\/51"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.uvm.edu\/mcintosh_pontius_links\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=47"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}The Role of Climate Change<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Solutions<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Build Your Foundational Knowledge<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Solutions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n