1. OTHER COASTAL WATERS ISSUES Gulf of Mexico HypoxiaHarmful Algae Blooms

2. aka The Dead Zone THE GULF OF MEXICO HYPOXIA ISSUE

3. Dead Zone Keeps Getting Bigger By Mark Schleifstein The annual dead zone along Louisianas coast has grown to record size this summer

4. Hypoxia = Low Oxygen (<2 ppm ) Hypoxia = Low Oxygen (<2 ppm ) Anoxia = No oxygen Anoxia = No oxygen WHAT IS HYPOXIA?

5. Nitrate-nitrogen is a major contributor to the hypoxic zone in the Gulf of Mexico. It is washed from fields to drainage ditches to streams, which feed into rivers and, ultimately, the Gulf of Mexico. Just as it helps crops grow on land, the nutrients also helps algae grow in water. Unfortunately, when the algae start to die and decompose, the oxygen in the water is depleted, creating an area that cant support most marine life. GULF OF MEXICO HYPOXIA Agricultural Research magazine, October 2002

6. 7,778 sq. miles For Illustration Only Based on Data From N. Rabalais, LUMCON

7. 1,750 sq. miles For Illustration Only Based on Data From N. Rabalais, LUMCON

8. 8,006 sq. miles For Illustration Only Based on Data From N. Rabalais, LUMCON

9. 8,500 sq. miles For Illustration Only Based on Data From N. Rabalais, LUMCON

10. For Illustration Only Based on Data From N. Rabalais, LUMCON

11. HYPOXIC AREA IN THE GULF OF MEXIC0 15 No data Data from N. Rabalais, LUMCON

12. FACTORS AFFECTING GULF HYPOXIA Fertilization Stratification Eutrophication Channelization

13. Annual nitrogen inputs to the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin * Taken from CENR publication Draft: Integrated Assessment of Hypoxia in the northern Gulf of Mexico.

14. THE HYPOXIC ZONE IN THE GULF OF MEXICO

16. Insert your states map with waterbodies here.

17. For Illustration Only Based on Data From N. Rabalais, LUMCON

19. Calcasieu River Mermentau River Vermilion River Bayou Teche Atchafalaya River Bayou Terrebonne Bayou Lafourche Mississippi River

20. FACTORS AFFECTING GULF HYPOXIA Fertilization Stratification Eutrophication Channelization

21. FINAL HYPOXIA ACTION PLAN – January 2001 Voluntary Approach to Reduce Nutrient Discharge to Gulf

22. Coastal Goal: By the year 2015, subject to the availability of additional resources, reduce the 5- year running average extent of the Gulf of Mexico hypoxic zone to less than 1,930 square miles through implementation of specific, practical, and cost-effective voluntary actions by all States, Tribes, and all categories of sources and removals within the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin to reduce the annual discharge of nitrogen into the Gulf.

23. Goal by 2015 15 No data HYPOXIC AREA IN THE GULF OF MEXIC0 Data from N. Rabalais, LUMCON

24. HYPOXIA IN THE GULF OF MEXICO

25. www.nos.noaa.gov CENR Hypoxia Report Location

26. HARMFUL ALGAE BLOOMS

29. Passed by Congress in 1998 Inter-Agency Task Force on Harmful Algal Blooms and Hypoxia National Assessment on HAB National Assessment on Hypoxia Assessment AND Plan for Hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Act