Today, NOAA and partners issued the 2013 dead zone predictions for two of the nation’s most hypoxia-impacted bodies of water: the Gulf of Mexico and the Chesapeake Bay. The Gulf of Mexico hypoxic “dead” zone is predicted to be large this year, with an area ranging from 7,286 to 8,651 square miles. The upper end would [...]
From June 4 – 6, Researchers from the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) met with Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab (GLERL) and regional university scientists from Heidelberg University, University of Toledo, Ohio State University, and the University of Michigan at the International Great Lakes Conference in Lafayette, IN. Participants developed new collaborative efforts [...]
On June 2-6, NCCOS led several sessions at this year’s International Association for Great Lakes Research annual conference at Purdue University. Our Great Lakes research addresses critical ecosystem and watershed-scale issues in the region such as invasive species, nutrient management hypoxia and impacts of multiple stressors. Sessions featuring NCCOS science included: Using Data and Models to Link [...]
On June 5, the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) kicked off the 2013 Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) forecasting season with its first weekly forecast for Lake Erie. Running from June to October, these forecasts generate bulletins which are sent to and used by local, regional, state and federal managers overseeing beach closures, increased drinking [...]
An NCCOS-sponsored project publication was selected for the 2012 Chandler-Misener Award by the Journal of Great Lakes Research. Titled “Historical pattern of phosphorus loading to Lake Erie watersheds,” the paper quantifies trends in phosphorus (P) loading to Lake Erie watersheds from 1935 to 2007. Over this 70-year period, P input to Lake Erie increased to peak values in [...]
In response to the limited success of current efforts to reduce nutrient pollution, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) is developing a “Challenge Prize” to promote new and faster innovations to address problems such as excess nitrogen and phosphorous (P), and the toxic algal blooms and low oxygen levels they produce. [...]
In overlapping venues on 17-18 April 2013, NCCOS co-led the Forum for Gulf of Mexico Hypoxia Research Coordination and Advancement, and represented NOAA at the U.S. Mississippi River Gulf of Mexico Watershed Nutrient (Hypoxia) Task Force Spring 2013 Public Meeting; both meetings aimed at advancing management mandates of the Hypoxia Task Force to reduce the [...]
‘Red tide’ and a loss of sea grass account for some manatee deaths, but researchers believe undiscovered factors are also at play. A record number of endangered manatees are dying in Florida’s waterways. So far this year, 582 manatees have died, more than any year on record, according to preliminary numbers from the Florida Fish [...]