The Alaskan Gyre and Western Subarctic Gyre are an iron-limited environment rather than a nitrogen or phosphorus limited environment. This region relies on dust blowing off the state of Alaska and other landmasses nearby to supply iron. Because it is limited by iron instead of nitrogen or phosphorus, it is known as high-nutrient, low-chlorophyll region. Iron limitation in high-nutrient, low-chlorophyll regions results in water that is rich in other nutrients because they have not been removed by the small populations of plankton that live there.