This model and user's guide were prepared under contract between the Minerals Management Service and Research and Planning Consultants, Inc. This report has been technically reviewed by the MMS, and it has been approved for publication. Approval does not signify that the contents necessarily reflect the views and policies of the MMS, nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use. It is, however, exempt from review and compliance with the MMS editorial standards

An MMS workshop report on the deepwater GOM concluded that there was a need for additional information on the composition and structure of benthic communities, the associated biogeochemical processes, habitat heterogeneity and physiography, trophic interactions, and the biological "health" of the region (Carney 1998). The deep-sea is a setting within which benthic communities survive and propagate in the northern GOM. The deep-sea is characterized by total darkness, low temperature, nearly featureless mud, sparse food resources, predictable biomass patterns, unusual diversity patterns, and...