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Old Man River snakes its way through America’s heartland, widening and accelerating before emptying into the Gulf of Mexico on its more than 2,300 mile journey.
Along its route, hundreds of tributaries add to the Mississippi River’s volume, not only water, but tremendous loads of sediments and nutrients from agricultural fields. These excess fertilizer and sediments make their way to the Gulf, leading to hypoxia, or oxygen depletion, and creating a “dead zone” each summer around the river’s mouth. This zone threatens commercial fishing and important marine habitat.
The Gulf dead zone is the one of largest oxygen-depleted waters in the world. It has more than doubled in size since 1984, reaching a record 8,500 square miles in 2002. Other large dead zones occur in the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea. There are also hypoxic areas in Lake Erie and Chesapeake Bay, as well as off numerous coasts around the world.
What The Nature Conservancy is Doing.
The Nature Conservancy has identified a set of actions that could contribute to the reduction of the hypoxia zone. By restoring wetlands and riparian systems to capture nutrients and reduce these inputs at the source, the Conservancy and our partners are aiming to slow or even reduce the growth of this hypoxic zone and the effects it is having throughout the region.
The Conservancy’s Mackinaw River Project in Illinois is one example of how the Conservancy is working with farmers to implement Best Management Practices to reduce nutrient and sediment run-off that ultimately enters the Mississippi.
Action starts when people talk.
In the midst of the dire warnings about expanding marine dead zones, there are reasons for hope and things we can do as individuals. First, start a conversation about the issue with friends, family and colleagues. Take a look at our Conversation Starters related to habitat restoration for relevant and compelling facts. And, learn more about our work by visiting related projects on the Conservancy’s web site, nature.org.
