Nutrient enrichment from anthropogenic sources is one of the major stresses imposed on our coastal ecosystems. This is particularly true in the northern Gulf of Mexico where the nation's largest river discharges into an otherwise oligotrophic subtropical system. To better understand coastal ecosystem response to nutrient enrichment, 30 federal and academic scientists joined forces from 1989 to 1994 in an interdisciplinary investigation of the continental shelf of the northern Gulf of Mexico. Through the Nutrient Enhanced Coastal Ocean Productivity (NECOP) Program of NOAA's Coastal Ocean Program, the researchers conducted a series of closely integrated retrospective analyses, process and monitoring studies, and modeling exercises. The results obtained confirm current and historical linkages between nutrients derived from the extensive Mississippi drainage basin and the coastal ecosystem of the Northern Gulf of Mexico and document its current status. Most of the extensive physical, biological, and chemical data generated are stored in a permanent NECOP data repository and are available on‐line to researchers and environmental managers.
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