Written by: Eva F.
There are areas within our earth’s natural bodies of water that have become referred to as “dead zones”. These zones are known to be regions with a lower concentration of dissolved oxygen due to the harmful effects of pollutants emitted by human activities. Each spring, a large dead zone forms in the Gulf of Mexico and its formation has large, disastrous environmental and economic effects. This dead zone forms because during springtime farmers are fertilizing their land, but as rain falls these nutrient chemicals run-off into streams and rivers that lead to the Gulf. Excessive nutrient run-off causes algae to bloom in the water, and oxygen is depleted by their overwhelming growth and decomposition. So how does this affect the economy?With harmfully low levels of oxygen dissolved in the water, many organisms that rely on the Gulf of Mexico as a habitat suffocate and die. These declining species make work for fisherman very difficult and cause a strong decline in the fishing industry. Particularly, the shrimp industry, based out of Louisiana feels the drastic effects of the dead zone formation. According to the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, the presence of a dead zone will be especially dramatic in the decline of shrimp population as they cannot easily migrate to a safer region of the ocean. The sharp fall in the supply of shrimp raises its price dramatically during springtime as the market has to adjust to these environmental limitations. Unfortunately, springtime also coincides with an increase in the demand for shrimp as the influx of warm weather brings consumers to crave more seafood to satisfy traditions such as Mardi Gras. Together, the decrease in supply and increase in demand for shrimp creates a shortage that cannot easily be fixed. To meet consumers demands shrimp has to be packaged and shipped from areas unaffected by a dead zone, which implies manufacturing and transportation costs that would undoubtedly be reflected in prices. As our fishing industry feels the effects of a dead zone, our GDP will as well as we seek to import more and more seafood.
On a more individual scale, fisherman located in regions affected by a dead zone feels the stress and pressure of a declining seafood population. Scott, the head of the Golden Meadow fishermen’s association, says, “You get to places where you trawl the bottom of the ocean and there’s nothing there–no fish, no shrimp. It gives you this disgusting hollow feeling. You’ve got to go deeper and deeper out into the Gulf.” However, moving out of the Gulf can be increasingly dangerous for fisherman and increase their production costs as they must pay for more and more fuel. With declining opportunities for work and falling wages due to minimal shrimp caught, these fisherman off the coast of the Gulf of Mexico are facing the effects of all of America’s wrongdoing. Because 40% of America’s land drains through the Mississipi River, the Gulf has been a dumping ground for harmful chemicals and waste that are killing the fish and the livelihoods of the many that depend on this industry.
So what must be done? Currently, the government is providing farmers agricultural subsidies that encourage the use of chemical fertilizers. The overuse and improper management of these fertilizers are what cause the vast amount of nutrient pollution in the Gulf and other bodies of water worldwide. Therefore, it is essential that these subsidies be halted or that subsidies should be granted to organic farmers in order to protect the organisms that inhabit our coasts and to protect the fishing industry that provides work for so many.
Works Cited
“The Dead Zone - How Farming Is Killing the Fishing Industry.” Gulf Hypoxia, gulfhypoxia.net/the-dead-zone-how-farming-is-killing-the-fishing-industry/.Hendy, Ian. “Gulf of Mexico 'Dead Zone' Is Already a Disaster – but It Could Get Worse.” Phys.org, Phys.org, 14 Aug. 2017, phys.org/news/2017-08-gulf-mexico-dead-zone-disaster.html.
“Price of Shrimp Impacted by Gulf of Mexico ‘Dead Zone.’” NCCOS Coastal Science Website, coastalscience.noaa.gov/news/price-of-shrimp-affected-by-gulf-of-mexico-dead-zone/.
US Department of Commerce, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “'Dead Zone' Is a More Common Term for Hypoxia, Which Refers to a Reduced Level of Oxygen in the Water.” NOAA's National Ocean Service, 1 Aug. 2014, oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/deadzone.html.
I agree with your stance, as these harmful chemicals are decreasing the supply in a market that has pretty high demand. The rise in price level greatly affects the consumer as well, now paying much more for shrimp around the country. Hopefully something can be done about these dead-zones where they can use chemical-free or chemicals that don't harm the fish and shrimp in order to benefit everyone.
ReplyDeleteThe dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico could have negative impacts on a local scale as well. Many of the industries surrounding the Gulf area are reliant on heavy tourism which they attract through their beaches and production of seafood. With the dead zone impairing the scenic appeal of the area, the demand for tourism in these coastal areas also decreases, threatening the livelihood of many local residents.
ReplyDeleteTo what extent can this be partially alleviated by promoting aquatic plant growth in the region? First and foremost they'd be able to raise the oxygen levels in the ocean, especially since the days will be longer than the nights soon, causing a longer time of producing oxygen and a shorter time of using it for the plants, as well as possibly absorbing some of the chemicals preventing the oxygen from dissolving in the water. Furthermore, these plants will become food for fish and could begin to alleviate problems with the fishing industry.
ReplyDeleteThis was a really interesting article. While we often look at economics as applying to areas more concretely relating to money, the ideas of decision making extend quite clearly to this case in environmental science. While we may be saving some time, effort and money in putting little thought into where these commercial fertilizers go, the reality of the effects they have on productivity far away clearly demonstrates the nature of the opportunity cost.
ReplyDeleteAs more and more environmental issues become more prevalent in our society due to maltreatment of the Earth, this will continue to have disastrous effect on businesses that rely on natural resources. These dangerous effects have a massive social cost and will eventually amount to a greater private cost as more amounts of these businesses lose their ability to produce as a result of the massive success and wealth of other big businesses.
ReplyDeleteI also found this article interesting. I often hear that we are over fishing our seas but I have not heard of dead zones where fish are dying due to the decrease in oxygen. I thought it was a good idea to provide organic farmers wiht subsidies to prevent the amount of chemicals that finding their way into the Gulf of Mexico. As the demand for fish increases, we need to find a way to prevent dead zones in order to keep the cost lower and the prices lower as well.
ReplyDeleteI found this post really interesting. However I think that depending on the culture of the food produced the economy does just fine with the dead zones that are found in certain bodies of water. I think that the government should be able to continue to provide subsidies to the farmers for their agriculture purposes. I also feel that these dead zones aren’t a huge problem when it comes to using the resources available to us. While it isn’t the most economically beneficial to have a smaller amount of resources during the year, I don’t think it is too impactful considering whether or not other products are “in season.”
ReplyDeleteIn my environmental science class we are learning about the strong correlation between the environment and our economy. Dead zones are a perfect example of this concept because they are caused by human actions, meaning that even indirectly, we still have great control over the economy. Since dead zones harm our water industries like fishing and even livelihood industries that surround the bodies of water, our nation’s ability to provide for our country decreases. When this decreases, we will begin to heavily rely on importing the goods, like fish for example, from other parts of the world. This will result in a lower GDP for our country, which is something we would like to prevent. Although the GDP does not provide all of the information for how our country is doing, it does provide a good indicator for our economy specifically, and we should work to keep it high and keep our economy growing.
ReplyDelete