In addition, NOAA's Ecological Forecasting Roadmap initiative is developing a national framework for hypoxia and other ecological forecasts (e.g., harmful algal blooms, pathogens) so that their benefits to the public can be sustained and improved over time. With its Coastal and Ocean Modeling Testbed, IOOS is evaluating a suite of hypoxia forecast models in the Gulf of Mexico and Chesapeake Bay. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS®). These products help scientists prep for the yearly monitoring cruise by informing them of the potential extent of hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico. Hypoxia Watch provides near-real-time data and map products using shipboard measurements of bottom-dissolved oxygen. The Gulf of Mexico Hypoxia Watch evolved as a cooperative project among NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service - NMFS, NCEI at Stennis, and the CoastWatch - Caribbean/Gulf of Mexico - Regional Node. In Chesapeake Bay, the research is providing important information to interagency management bodies like the Chesapeake Bay Program. In the Gulf of Mexico, this research helped the Mississippi River/Gulf of Mexico Watershed Nutrient Task Force set goals and prioritize actions to reduce the size of the annual Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone. NCCOS has funded the development of hypoxia forecasts in the Gulf of Mexico since 1990 and in the Chesapeake Bay since 2005. Much of NOAA's hypoxia work is managed through NCCOS, which studies and monitors the effects of hypoxia and other sources of pollution nationwide. NOAA also collaborates with local, state, and federal agencies, regional task forces, universities, conservation organizations, and industry partners to develop management strategies to reduce nutrient inputs into coastal waters. NOAA studies and funds research on the causes and impacts of hypoxia. ![]() This type of research will ultimately assist decision makers and resource managers as they address the challenges of protecting ecosystems in a changing climate. NOAA's National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) carries out interdisciplinary research to advance understanding of the relationship between ecosystem function and climate change. Hypoxia and Climate ChangeĬhanges in both global and regional climates have the potential to make coastal and marine ecosystems even more vulnerable to hypoxic conditions. The causes of nutrient pollution, specifically of nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients, include agricultural runoff, fossil-fuel burning, and wastewater treatment effluent. Hypoxia occurs most often, however, as a consequence of human-induced factors, especially nutrient pollution (also known as eutrophication). Limited vertical mixing between the water "layers" restricts the supply of oxygen from surface waters to more saline bottom waters, leading to hypoxic conditions in bottom habitats. Stratification in the water column, which occurs when less dense freshwater from an estuary mixes with heavier seawater, is one natural cause of hypoxia. This occurs due to a balance between oxygen input from the atmosphere and certain biological and chemical processes, some of which produce oxygen while others consume it. The amount of oxygen in any water body varies naturally, both seasonally and over time.
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