Aug 05, 2021
Scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmosheric Administration (NOAA), Louisiana State University (LSU) and the Louisiana Univsersity Marine Consortium (LUMCON) announced that this years Gulf of Mexico "dead zone"- area of low to no oxygen that can kill fish and marine life - is approximately 6,334 square miles or equivalent to more than four million acres of habitat potentially unavailable to fish and bottom species.
The LSU and LUMCON scientists who measured the zone from July 25 to August 1 aboard the R/V Pelican, found the "dead zone" to be larger than predicted before the trip. The average hypoxic zone over the past five years is 5,380 square mile, which is 2.8 times larger than the 2035 target of the Hypoxia Task Force. LDEQ is a member of the task force working to reduce the zone. Since record began in 1985, the largest hypoxic zone measured was 8,776 square miles in 2017.
For more information, go to https://www.noaa.gov/news-release/larger-than-average-gulf-of-mexico-dead-zone-measured