Case Study: The Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is one of the largest dead zones in the world and one of the more studied. It actually starts on the farmland in the center of the country. Here, mass crops are sprayed with synthetic fertilizers (usually in the spring time), these fertilizers contain heavy amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus. The nutrients are then carried by runoff into the Mississippi River and transported all the way down to The Gulf of Mexico. It is here at the mouth of Mississppi River that the dead zone occurs. The synthetic nutrients cause the rapid growth of cyannobacteria and with that an algal bloom (The Gulf). Oxygen begins to deplete and everything that can flees the area. As the algal bloom begins to recede it uses up all remaining oxygen in the decompostion process, forcing all other life to either leave or perish. The Gulf of Mexico is home to many fisheries, espeically shrimp and oyster which are unable to escape.
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