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USDA ISSUES REPORT: REDUCING NUTRIENT LOSSES FROM CROPLAND IN THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER BASIN
Sep. 27, 2018
Source: USDA news release
Every summer, a large area forms in the northern Gulf of Mexico where dissolved oxygen is too low for many aquatic species to survive. This hypoxic zone is fueled by nitrogen and phosphorus losses from the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin. Research has established that nitrogen and phosphorus loadings into the Gulf originate largely from cropland.
The Mississippi River Gulf of Mexico Watershed Nutrient Task Force, comprised of State and Federal agencies and led by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), established a goal to reduce the average size of the summer hypoxic zone from 5,236 square miles (current 30-year average) to 1,931. Achieving this goal could require a reduction in nutrient loads to the Gulf by 45 percent or more, which could have significant economic impacts on producers and consumers.
This study modeled changes that would achieve a 45-percent reduction in nitrogen and phosphorus loads from cropland to the Gulf at least cost to producers and consumers. The most cost-effective method to meet the Gulf goal focuses a mix of nutrient reduction efforts in the Lower Mississippi sub-basin.
For more information, please view the report.
You might also like viewing the companion Amber Waves article, Cost-Effective Strategies for Reducing Cropland Nutrient Deliveries to the Gulf of Mexico.
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