The Gulf of Mexico has been staggered by man-made pollution since long before the Deepwater Horizon oil leak began, say Oceanographers and conservationists.

The New York Times said on Friday that experts aren't optimistic about the future health of the gulf and say it has to do more with decades of contamination rather than the undersea geyser sparked by the loss of the massive offshore drilling rig.

Aaron Viles, of the Gulf Restoration Network, said, "This has been the nation's sacrifice zone and has been for 50-plus years. What we're seeing right now with BP's crude is just a very photogenic representation of that."

According to The Times, countless smaller leaks and spills from the offshore energy industry coupled with constant agricultural runoff from the Mississippi River watershed have steadily contaminated the gulf for years.

Huge amounts of money and strict regulation would be needed to nurse the gulf back to health, experts have said. However, the gulf states are seen as being both limited in their own financial resources and unwilling to lean on the region's important petroleum industry. (With Inputs from Agencies)