Gulf Of Mexico Dead Zone Essay

In 2010, the Gulf of Mexico was the largest ever recorded dead zone of 7,700 square miles. Seven years later, the zone is still growing; the Gulf’s dead zone is now up to 8,776 square miles, larger than the size of New Jersey. The dead zone is caused by excess nutrients entering the water. Iowa’s waters are polluted by different causes affecting humans, and the growth of organisms.
Agriculture and nutrient runoff can cause algae to overpopulate an area, using up more oxygen, leading to not enough oxygen making its way to other organisms. In the article “Gulf of Mexico ‘dead zone’ is the largest ever measured,” National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (2017) explains how without oxygen going below the surface of the water where algae lives, animals and marine plants are not able to survive, so to maintain life, they migrate to a different area of the lake, stream, or river.
Blue-green algae or cyanobacteria, can cause major problems for humans as well.
When soil or sediment and nutrients are mixed with precipitation, it runs into rivers and lakes. The excess sediment and nutrients are then mixed within the water, causing the water to pollute. According to “Watershed Basics,” Iowa DNR, sediment is the most popular pollutant. It can originate from farms, livestock pastures, and woodlands. Sediment then collects in the water, and creates a sheet like cover on the surface. It also kills, fish and wildlife, and creates unsafe drinking water. Surplus amounts of sediment can cause cyanobacteria to overpopulate an area as talked about previously.
In conclusion, pollution in Iowa’s water is a growing concern for marine organisms and humans. To prevent algae from becoming overpopulated and harming marine and land life, Iowa’s community needs to keep track of what is in fertilizers and fields and yards. Too much nutrients in a water system is harmful; algae can overpopulate and begin to wipe out