NOAA CSCOR Project Officer:
Libby Jewett

Project Rationale. Nutrient enrichment of estuaries has contributed to the degradation of benthic habitats by fueling algal production and associated depletion of oxygen (hypoxia) from bottom waters in coastal systems worldwide. A major impediment to developing successful restoration strategies is the complicating effect of climate variability. There is a clear need for improved numerical models and empirical analyses that are capable of producing dependable forecasts of hypoxia and related ecological responses to nutrient loading under variable climatic conditions. We propose to develop, test and apply such models in two contrasting coastal systems, Chesapeake Bay and Delaware Inland Bays, where rich time-series of water quality data exist and active collaborations between researchers and managers are ongoing. The proposed study will provide analysis and forecasting of climate and nutrient effects on hypoxia, water quality and living resources by developing an improved modeling system that is flexible and readily adapted for implementation in diverse coastal ecosystems.

Recent Results - (links to separate web pages)- Coming soon!

Model Animations - (links to separate web pages)- Coming soon!

Publications - (citations with links to abstracts) - Coming soon!

Outreach - Go to the Dead Zones web site