It’s a problem the size of Massachusetts, and Minnesotans may be partially to blame.

More than 2,300 miles from its headwaters in northern Minnesota, the Mississippi River discharges water from 31 states and two Canadian provinces into the Gulf of Mexico. At the rate of up to 612,000 cubic feet per second, water pours into the Gulf - and along with it a host of additives that are creating a worrisome situation.

Gulf hypoxia is a condition in which excess nutrients in water lead to the creation of a dead zone - an area devoid of marine life. According to the Mississippi River/Gulf of Mexico Watershed Nutrient Task Force, in 2007, gulf hypoxia had resulted in a dead zone off the coast of Louisiana and Texas that was bigger than the state of Massachusetts.

“It’s a large issue,” said Brad Moore, commissioner of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Task Force. “Parts of 31 states contribute to the load.”

“All rivers in the Mississippi River Basin contribute to the problem,” said Terry Schwalbe with the Lower Minnesota River Watershed District.

However, it turns out the Minnesota River is a significant contributor to the problem. According to Moore, water originating in Minnesota makes up 7 percent of what enters the Gulf of Mexico. Of that percentage, the Minnesota River – which runs through huge tracts of agricultural land - accounts for 70 percent.

Algae populations

But why be worried?

Each summer, excess nutrients from cities and farm fields make their way into the Mississippi River and its water sources.

Those nutrients - mainly nitrates and phosphorus - provide a rich food source for algae. Algae populations bloom quickly and then die. Once they die, they sink to the bottom of the gulf where oxygen in the water is consumed to decompose their bodies. Large algal populations deplete oxygen levels, making it difficult for other marine life to survive.

Hypoxia is a natural process, Moore admitted. It is usually resolved when hurricane season comes and stirs up the gulf waters, but there are still plenty of reasons to be concerned. Hypoxic areas that were once showing up every few years now return to the Gulf of Mexico on an annual basis and they’re getting bigger.

“In the 1990s, (the size of the hypoxic zone) dramatically jumped,” he said. “It doubled and we were worried it would cause an ecological breakdown.”

Moore said the quality of the water entering the Gulf is “important to the livelihood and integrity of the ecosystem.”

For example, sea life that cannot leave the area die while mobile creatures move further out into the ocean where oxygen is more plentiful. That forces commercial seafood operations to follow. Longer trips to catch fish and such mean higher prices at restaurants and grocery stores.

Education

And it all starts in the Mississippi River’s home state.

“The consensus is we are contributing to it,” said Moore.

“Everybody’s downstream of someone else,” said Scott Kudelka with the Minnesota River Watershed Alliance. “It’s all about good stewardship.”

The problem stems from both agricultural and urban run-off. Farmers use phosphorus and nitrates to grow their crops, which eventually find their way to the river. And in cities, growth spurs development meaning more land under concrete, which allows polluted water to run off rather than soaking back into the land.

“There’s nothing stopping it,” said Kudelka. “It doesn’t collect in wetlands or forests when there are no wetlands or forests.”

Several state and federal agencies are now working to get the word out about water quality and what can be done to improve it.

“We’re trying to get everybody involved,” said Kudelka. “Everybody contributes to pollutants.”  

“There’s not enough money to correct the problem,” said Schwalbe. “So we key in on education.”

Kudelka said they try to tie in the problem on both local and global levels. Polluted water here can affect fishing and swimming, but the problem compounds further downstream.

Cities develop plans for storm water management. Environmental groups like the Friends of the Minnesota River Valley host clean up days. Farmers are encouraged to reduce their use of phosphorus and are given incentives to restore wetlands or create buffers between their farm fields and the river.

“We can’t just hit them over the head with a hammer,” said Moore. “We have to show practical solutions that will work for them. They’re looking for more efficient ways to farm, too. They don’t want to be wasting nutrients by sending them down river.”

Progress

Local agencies are encouraged by the results of their efforts so far.

“There are a lot of people working on this,” said Moore. “Progress is being made.”

“Sediment and phosphorous levels are decreasing due to conservation efforts,” said Kudelka.

The goal of the Mississippi River/Gulf of Mexico Watershed Nutrient Task Force is to reduce the size of the hypoxic zone by two-thirds by 2015. It’s an ambitious goal, Moore admits.

“The decision of the task force is to hold on to the goal and keep on target,” he said. “Now we just have to be more accountable as to how we’re going to get there.”

That means more education, more outreach and more political lobbying.But locally, Schwalbe says he already sees a difference in the Minnesota River.

“I grew up in Chaska and I played in the rivers and streams,” he said. “I see a much-improved river at times.”

That may not mean much in the Gulf of Mexico, however. What effect this summer’s floods along the Mississippi River might have on the hypoxic zone remains yet to be seen.

“We’ll find out soon,” said Wayne Anderson with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. “We’ll do testing of the hypoxic zone in July but we anticipate that this year’s will be larger than ever.”

-Mollee Francisco, staff writer

What can you do?

* Avoid using chemical fertilizers on lawns.

* Compost lawn trimmings, branches and leaves instead of throwing them in the garbage.

* Create a rain garden with loose, absorbent soils and native plants to catch and hold rain water runoff from roofs and driveways.

* Purchase a rain barrel to catch runoff from roofs and use collected water for plants and gardens.

Source: Minnesota River Watershed Alliance and the Natural Resources Defense Council