Abstract:
Seasonal hypoxia in the northern Gulf of Mexico has been mapped extensively and is known to overlap the habitat of the brown shrimp Farfantepenaeus aztecus on the Louisiana continental shelf. Yet the impacts of Gulf hypoxia on the profitable brown shrimp fishery in Louisiana remain largely unknown. The problem is primarily attributable to nonpoint source pollution in the Mississippi River, but awareness of the problem has not resulted in an effective policy solution to stem this pollution to date. Using the combination of a quantitative data analysis to look for a correlation between Farfantepenaeus aztecus and hypoxic water, a survey mailed to shrimp fishers in Louisiana, and qualitative interviews with shrimp fishers and environmental activists and lawyers in Louisiana, I will examine the potential of a legal tool, the Public Trust doctrine, to slow nonpoint source pollution into the Mississippi River.
