A.

INTRODUCTION

Should we be worried about dead zones? How excessive is nutrient pollution

from human activities caused the oceans to form dead zones?

According to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of U.S

Department of Commerce, “dead zone” is a more frequent term for hypoxia which

means to a depleting amount of oxygen in the water. Hypoxic zones are areas in the

ocean where the oxygen concentration is reduced leading the animals to suffocation

and death, and that’s how dead zones are being formed. These particular zones can

occur naturally, however, scientists are concerned on the areas created or developed

by human activity. There are many considered factors that combine to form dead zones

but the primary cause is the nutrient pollution created by humans. Excess nutrients that

throw out land or are channel as wastewater into rivers ad coasts can stimulate an

overpopulation of algae which results to sinking and water decomposition. The

decomposition process uses up oxygen and depletes the supply available to alive and

well marine life.

The rationale of this research is to show awareness regarding how dead zones

affect the habitat and the life of numerous sea creatures as well as the waters of the

planet. To alleviate the cause of formation of these dead zones by reducing the massive

amount of nutrient pollution in order to fully clear the oceans and protect its marine-life

animals. To achieve the rationale, this research will be supplemented through facts

gathered from books, articles and other reliable sources.

This topic aims to spread awareness regarding how extreme human activities and other

factors into forming dead zones that will cause to destroy many oceans and its sea

creatures. Oceans must be protected for it is not just the place for marine creatures but

also affects the humans and its livelihood. According to National Ocean Service, oceans

provide many advantages to our planet and all the creatures that live there such as the

air we breathe, climate regulation, transportation, recreation, economic benefits, food

and medicine. Another, Protect Planet Ocean stated that, “Oceans are the lifeblood of

planet Earth and humankind. They flow over nearly three-quarters of our planet, and

hold 97% of the planet’s water. They produce more than half of the oxygen in the

atmosphere, and absorb the most carbon from it.”

Increasing number of marine dead zones in the world will most likely put

countries like Philippines which depend much on the oceans for food and jobs, in an

unsteady economic position. According to Philippine Statistics Authority, fisheries

production in the Philippines increased up to 1.01 million metric tons (MMT) within the

first 3 months of 2019 from 1 million MMT as fish catch as well as outside municipal

waters inched up. When the time comes that dead zones were able to reach the

Philippine waters, this will bring a massive effect specifically in fishing industries.

Through this research, any findings gathered from reliable sources will benefit

the students, sea creature and/or marine advocates, and the future researchers related

to this topic.
C. RESULTS OF DATA GATHERED

A dead zone of oxygen-depleted waters forms every summer in the Gulf of Mexico in
response to nutrient runoff from the Mississippi River watershed. Scientists have been
tracking the summer dead zone for 33 years now, and they have found that this year’s
area of low oxygen waters extends for 6,952 square miles (18,006 square km). It is the
8th largest dead zone ever recorded.

Nutrient-rich runoff containing nitrogen and phosphorus from agricultural lands and
sewage causes the summer dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico. These nutrients, in
combination with sunlight and warm waters in the Gulf, trigger algal blooms. Then, as
the algae die off and are decomposed by bacteria, oxygen in the bottom waters drops to
levels that can be deadly for many marine organisms.

Extent of the summer dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico according to sampling data
collected by Louisiana scientists in July 2019. Image via LUMCON.

Scientists took measurements of the extent of this year’s dead zone from onboard the
R/V Pelican over July 23–29, 2019. The area of the dead zone was estimated at 6,952
square miles (18,006 square km). This is the eighth largest dead zone recorded in the
33 year historical record of such events.

The dead zone was actually smaller in size than that predicted back in spring based on
the amount of rainfall and runoff generated this year. Scientists suspect that Hurricane
Barry, which made landfall along the Louisiana coast on July 13 as a Category 1 storm,
stirred up the waters and disrupted the growth of the dead zone. The dead zone is
expected to continue its rapid growth if future conditions remain calm. The dead zone
will eventually dissipate in the autumn as water temperatures cool and oxygen-rich
waters become well mixed.

Marine ecologist Nancy Rabalais of Louisiana State University led the sampling effort.
She commented on the survey results in a statement:

Past research indicates that hypoxia can take a week to reform in the summer after
major wind events such as the recent passage of Hurricane Barry. We didn’t know
what we would find when we went out to map the zone. We found that, despite the
storm, the zone reformed and was in the process of rapidly expanding.

The dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico has harmful effects on marine life and fisheries,
and so scientists have set a target to have the dead zone grow to no larger than 1,900
square miles (4921 square km) on average (with data collected over a five year period)
by 2035. To achieve such a remedial goal, further reductions in nutrient runoff from
farms and urban areas will be necessary.

Trend in the size of the dead zone that forms each summer in the Gulf of Mexico.
Image via LUMCON.
The annual summer sampling in the Gulf of Mexico is a joint endeavor of Louisiana
State University and LUMCON (Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium), and the
scientists receive funding support from NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration) for their work.

Bottom line: A large dead zone formed in the Gulf of Mexico during the summer of 2019.
The size of the dead zone was smaller than expected because of Hurricane Barry, but it
was estimated to be the 8th largest on record. Large dead zones in the Gulf of Mexico
are harmful to marine life, and further reductions in nutrient runoff are needed to reduce
the size of the summer dead zone that forms every year.

D. SUMMARY

Dead zones are low-oxygen, or hypoxic, areas in the world’s oceans and lakes.

Because most organisms need oxygen to live, few organisms can survive in hypoxic

conditions (Dead Zone. (n.d). Retrieved from

https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/dead-zone/). Scientists classify dead

zones according to how long the hypoxia lasts namely permanent, temporary, seasonal

and diel cycling. Permanent dead zones occur in very deep water; Temporary dead

zones are hypoxic regions that last for hours or days; Seasonal dead zones occur every

year during the warm months; Diel cycling hypoxia refers to dead zones that occurs

during warm months, but the water is only hypoxic at night (What are Dead Zones in the

Ocean? (n.d). Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/dead-zones-4164335).

One of the causes of ocean dead zones

is eutrophication. Eutrophication is how the

underwater environment reacts to pollutants

from runoff that comes from the land and

leads to the overabundance of nutrients,

from https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-and-effects-of-ocean-dead-

zones.php). Another is the large amount of nitrogen fertilizer used in modern agriculture,

and also incidentally on home gardens and golf courses. When nitrogen fertilizer

contains nitrate, it is easily lost to runoff waters, inasmuch as nitrate is highly soluble in

water. Applications in excess of immediate plant demand are lost. Even when nitrogen

fertilizer is applied in other forms, such as ammonium or urea, these are easily

converted to nitrate by soil microbes and lost in runoff. By one account nearly 8-12% of

the nitrogen fertilizer applied worldwide is lost from fertilized fields and transported to

the sea. In some individual fields, the value can be as high as 50% (Schlesinger, W.

(2016, August 12). Retrieved from https://blog.nature.org/science/2016/08/12/hypoxia-

hypoxic-zones-agriculture-dead-algal-bloom/).

Lastly, sewage, vehicular and industrial

emissions and even natural factors also play a

role in the development of dead zones (What

Causes Ocean “Dead Zones”? (2012,

September 25). Retrieved from

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ocean-dead-zones/).

Aside from the causes of hypoxia, there are several effects as well. One of it is

zones can cause reproductive problems in the organisms that survive. The pollution and
hypoxia can lead to lower egg counts and less spawning, according to Scientific

American. Reduced oxygen levels and toxins can lower sex hormone concentrations,

decrease the size of reproductive organs and cause birth defects and genetic

abnormalities (Gustafson, F. (n.d). Ocean Dead Zones and the Effects of Marine

Pollution. Retrieved from https://education.seattlepi.com/ocean-dead-zones-effects-

marine-pollution-4760.html). According to Gustafson, another effect is the production of

toxic algal blooms called, “red or brown tides”. As the organisms grow, the toxins spread

to fishes, mollusks and marine mammals like dolphins. A study conducted by Stanford

University researchers revealed that marine life affected by the toxins not only depleted

food sources for other sea creatures, it impacted industries that harvested products

such as seafood for human consumption.

After presenting several cause and effects of ocean dead zones or hypoxia, there

are solutions on how to stop or at least alleviate this type of environmental dilemma.

These solutions will not just benefit the ocean, its sea creature and the people who live

and rely there as their way of life but also the whole planet, the Mother Earth. Many of

the strategies for reducing nutrient loading target agricultural practices including nutrient

management, the application fertilizers can vary in amount, timing, and method with

varying impacts on water quality. Better management of nutrient application can reduce

nutrient runoff to streams; cover crops, planting of certain grasses, grains or clovers,

called cover crops can recycle excess nutrients and reduce soil erosion, keeping

nutrients out of surface waterways; buffers, planting trees, shrubs, and grass around

fields, especially those that border water bodies, can help by absorbing or filtering out

nutrients before they reach a water body; conservation tillage, reducing how often fields
are tilled reduces erosion and soil compaction, builds soil organic matter, and reduces

runoff; managing livestock waste, keeping animals and their waste out of streams,

rivers, and lakes keep nitrogen and phosphorus out of the water and restores stream

banks; and lastly, drainage water management, the reducing nutrient loadings that drain

from agricultural fields helps prevent degradation of the water in local streams and lakes

(Managing Runoff to Reduce the Dead Zone. (n.d). Retrieved from

https://serc.carleton.edu/integrate/teaching_materials/food_supply/student_materials/11

14).

E. CONCLUSION

Oceans must be protected for it is not just the place for marine creatures but also

affects the humans and its livelihood. According to National Ocean Service, oceans

provide many advantages to our planet and all the creatures that live there such as the

air we breathe, climate regulation, transportation, recreation, economic benefits, food

and medicine. Another, Protect Planet Ocean stated that, “Oceans are the lifeblood of

planet Earth and humankind. They flow over nearly three-quarters of our planet, and

hold 97% of the planet’s water. They produce more than half of the oxygen in the

atmosphere, and absorb the most carbon from it.”

IV.BIBLIOGRAPHY

 https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/deadzone.html

 https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/oceans/dead-zones/

 https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/why-care-about-ocean.html

 https://theoceanpreneur.com/sail-green/seven-reasons-ocean-important/
 http://www.protectplanetocean.org/collections/introduction/introbox/oceans/introd

uction-item.html

 https://www.rappler.com/business/230786-fisheries-production-q1-2019 -

fishing/philippines

 https://globalnation.inquirer.net/23761/marine-dead-zones-to-put-philippines-at-

risk—un

 https://serc.carleton.edu/integrate/teaching_materials/food_supply/student_mater

ials/1114

 https://www.thoughtco.com/dead-zones-4164335

 https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-and-effects-of-ocean-dead-

zones.php

 https://blog.nature.org/science/2016/08/12/hypoxia-hypoxic-zones-agriculture-

dead-algal-bloom/

 https://education.seattlepi.com/ocean-dead-zones-effects-marine-pollution-

4760.html)

Project in
 Math
Arianna Yesha P. Frial

10-Plato