I found this to be of interest:
Massive 8,000-mile 'dead zone' could be one of the gulf's largest
"Rabalais says she's not surprised that this year's dead zone will be particularly large. Much of the Midwest saw unprecedented rainfall this spring, leading to a large increase in the amount of runoff washing into the sea. Many farmers were so affected by the intense rains that they were unable to plant crops like corn and soybean, meaning all the nitrogen and phosphorus-rich fertilizer they had spread washed into the Mississippi. Scientists are predicting that a warming climate could lead to more extreme rainfall in the region and ultimately make it more difficult to control fertilizer runoff.
“The best way to solve the issue is to limit the nutrients at their source,” says Rabalais. “Once they're in the river, there's no good way to reduce them.”
Eugene Turner, also from Louisiana State University, worked with Rabalais on predicting the size of the dead zone. He says better management practices could reduce the size, and suggested maintaining soil health by rotating crops, using less fertilizer, and using crop covers to keep soil in place.
David Scheurer is a scientist from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration who studies dead zones. He notes that it's difficult to attribute a larger dead zone to just one practice like agricultural runoff, but notes that it plays a significant role in the zone’s formation.
“Scientifically we can reduce the size, but whether you can get there politically, that's still a work in progress,” he says."
Massive 8,000-mile 'dead zone' could be one of the gulf's largest
"Rabalais says she's not surprised that this year's dead zone will be particularly large. Much of the Midwest saw unprecedented rainfall this spring, leading to a large increase in the amount of runoff washing into the sea. Many farmers were so affected by the intense rains that they were unable to plant crops like corn and soybean, meaning all the nitrogen and phosphorus-rich fertilizer they had spread washed into the Mississippi. Scientists are predicting that a warming climate could lead to more extreme rainfall in the region and ultimately make it more difficult to control fertilizer runoff.
“The best way to solve the issue is to limit the nutrients at their source,” says Rabalais. “Once they're in the river, there's no good way to reduce them.”
Eugene Turner, also from Louisiana State University, worked with Rabalais on predicting the size of the dead zone. He says better management practices could reduce the size, and suggested maintaining soil health by rotating crops, using less fertilizer, and using crop covers to keep soil in place.
David Scheurer is a scientist from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration who studies dead zones. He notes that it's difficult to attribute a larger dead zone to just one practice like agricultural runoff, but notes that it plays a significant role in the zone’s formation.
“Scientifically we can reduce the size, but whether you can get there politically, that's still a work in progress,” he says."
