Ocean nitrates expected to go up

[kathywithbirds]

Corn boom may expand 'dead zone' - Environment - MSNBC.com

[Woodstock]

[Frankie]

[BigAl07]

Wow! That's VERY disturbing! I wonder if they could combine crops and maybe plant something along the finges/edges that could increase the uptake of Nitrogen! Maybe create like a barrier between the run-off and the rivers/streams with something that takes up nitrogen very quickly and effciently. I'm sure (or at least hope) there's a plant that can do this. Maybe just a strip of this barrier plant between the crop and the waters edge.

Or what about some type of system that can absorb it.. like some type of matting or something? There's GOT to be a way to handle this.....

[DrHank]

It's really a shame and I wish there was a solution but when you tell a farmer that he can double his income by growing corn what else can he do. He has a family to feed and bills to pay to. If only someone could come up with a lucrative crop with a high nitrogen uptake to plant between the corn and the tributaries that catch the run off.

Unfortunately, for every good side there seems to be a bad side too.

[wonderloss]

Originally Posted by DrHank

It's really a shame and I wish there was a solution but when you tell a farmer that he can double his income by growing corn what else can he do. He has a family to feed and bills to pay to.

Get rid of government subsidies that encourage this sort of behavior?

[xelnaga15]

You know what else is disturbing about this.... I may have read wrong when I was in the San diago Aquarium's global warming exhibit... but I'm Quite sure I read that Ethanol based fuel (the corn fuel they are talking about in this article) causes more air pollution than gasoline! That the only benefit to E85 Ethanol is PRICE....... SO lame ... not only are we killing the skies but now our little wet friends!

Not to get into a political discussion here but I think we can all agree we need a change in our government (not talking about just the president) to take a stand and put a stop to some things that are being allowed to happen to our environment. You know it was my understanding that the problem with using oil based fuel wasn’t just a problem with the price.... at least in my book price isn’t the only issue I have with oil based fuel. I think it’s not even a step in the right direction to use E85 ethanol but more of a trading price for more pollutants. We need to move to something that is not only friendly on our wallets but our little friends as well.

Sorry about the ethanol rant but this is one of the main reasons corn farmers are planting so much corn!

[Amphibious]

There is a way to reduce or eliminate the Nitrogen runoff. It's called marshes and estuaries that naturally filter out all sorts of pollutants. A great example of this would be the original Everglades, the "Sea of Grass". But "progress", government, Army corps of Engineers and sugar cane growers have nearly destroyed this natural filter. Now we are spending billions of dollars to come up with a renovation to restore the natural flow of water through the Everglades.

The destruction of our precious natural resource will continue as long as real estate demand for lake or shore front property keeps prices sky high. The Mississippi delta, while huge, is being exploited in the same manner.

I worked around the farming community for ten years. Their costs of doing business are high and their profits low. Machinery costs, to plant and harvest crops, are outrageous. Statistics prove in a ten year period the farmer would have two profitable years, five mediocre years and three years of going in the hole. Not a good way to make a living. There's lots more that goes into the equation but if it weren't for the dedication of the farmer this country would be in dire straits.

Yes I know, if it weren't for the government's meddling into our daily lives trying to solve our every problem with subsides, we'd probably be better off financially, too. It's not an easy thing to do, keeping 260 million people safe, feed, housed, clothed, educated and happy, but America is still the land of freedom and opportunity.

Wow, OK, I'll get down off my soap box now.

Dick

[nanoreefsrcool]

this sux their will be no such thing as coral in 20 years .due to over fishing global warming and toxix dumping. there goes my big dream about haveing a monster reef when i get older

[DrHank]

You may still be able to have your monster reef but you'll have to grow it yourself. The wonderful thing about this hobby is that with the advances in coral farming and more and more folks who are learning how to maintain their own home reefs, we may be able to help ensure that future aquarium owners are successful.

One of the best things about RS is that there is a nearly endless amount of accurate information and a bunch of friendly folks who only want to be able to help.

[michael_cb_125]

It is hard to imagine that there is more life in the sea than on land. Then take into consideration that these places are rapidly declining, thanks to humans(and other things).

I feel bad for the farmers. They are only trying to make a living. People cant blame them, farmers are only doing their jobs. Unfortunatley, farmers are not appreciated enough. Without farmers, the US would be royally screwed. I just wish the government would just back off and take action. The government does do many good things, but it is just liek with everything else, people focus on the NEGATIVE.

[meandean45]

Can anybody prove any of this? I read a lot of "could, should, might, etc.", but see no definitive proof that any of this has anything to do with corn, or that corn WILL cause this problem to get worse. Our government and the media have a long history of manipulating information to get what they want from the public.

Regards, Dean

[kathywithbirds]

Ah, a fellow conspiracist, Dean?

I believe I'm agreeing with Amphibious... river deltas act as a natural filter. BUT I don't think it's just the government that needs to change its tune. We are all guilty of self-concernment, (is that a word? how about self-interest?) not out of selfishness but just because one is focused on one's needs first. That filters out all kinds of ways, leading to us leveling deltas and rainforests, killing off endangered species, etc. Then when we go to try and "fix" a problem, like growing corn for ethanol for "greener" cars, we create even more problems. I believe we should try to put the world back the "way it was" before we started messing with it, it would be healthier for the entire human race. Just don't ask me how, I have no idea.

I'm a fan of Dr. Ian Malcom's statement that we're not killing the planet, we're making it inhospitable for ourselves.

... have I elaborated on my dolphin/Atlantis theory yet?

[cracker]

Originally Posted by meandean45

Can anybody prove any of this? I read a lot of "could, should, might, etc.", but see no definitive proof that any of this has anything to do with corn, or that corn WILL cause this problem to get worse. Our government and the media have a long history of manipulating information to get what they want from the public.

Regards, Dean

I agree Dean! The MSNBC article doesn't say anything about that it's mostly caused by heavy flow of freshwater is the main cause of low oxygen levels in the Gulf of Mexico. Sorry but the statement "A 7,900 sq mile dead zone where no fish can survive" is imo way over blown. That's like saying a cesspool the size of New Jersey exists right off the coast of Louisiana.

[kathywithbirds]

That article is definitely more precise in its factiods, cracker, but it's from 2005. I don't believe the 7,900 sq ft figure is BS, but MSN doesn't elaborate on details of how they got that figure. I live within spitting distance of the Delaware, and trust me, there can be ALOT of pollutants around... as a matter of fact, this area is being studied for pollutants with the predicted end result of eminent domain-ing a large portion of the city adn kicking people out of their homes because it will be deemed unfit for living. In about a year.