The Gulf of Mexico's annual "dead zone" along coastal - an area with oxygen levels so low it can kill life - has been measured at 3,058 square miles, almost the size of Yellowstone National Park, according to NOAA and a team of scientists from LSU and the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium announced Aug. 2.
It's about 1,000 square miles smaller than NOAA's June prediction based on measurements of key nutrients carried to the GoM by the Mississippi River, and its lower-than-average flow this year.
It was also about 200 square miles smaller than last year's dead zone.
However, the 5-year average size is 4,347 square miles, more than twice as large of reduction goals set by the Mississippi River/Gulf of Mexico Hypoxia federal-state task force.
It's the seventh-smallest zone measured by the NOAA-funded LSU/LUMCON cruise since measurements began in 1985.
With more frequent and intense weather in the GoM, it is "imperative that we continue to measure hypoxia in this region as an indicator of ocean health and progress toward management targets,” Nicole LeBoeuf, director of NOAA’s National Ocean Service said in a media release announcing the results of a measuring cruise.
The data collected "helps decision-makers fine tune strategies to reduce the size of the hypoxic zone and mitigate harmful impacts to our coastal resources, communities and economy.” (NOLA.com 08/02/23) Gulf 'dead zone' is smaller, but still twice reduction goal | Environment | nola.com
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