NOAA Reports “Dead Zone” In The Gulf Has Grown To The Size Of New Jersey

Agri-Pulse reports:

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says this year’s “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico, which is fed by nutrients that flow done the Mississippi River, is about the size of New Jersey.

The 6,705-square mile area of low to no oxygen is the 12th-largest recorded in 38 years of measurement, according to NOAA. The average size over the past five years is about 4,300 square miles, more than twice the targetl of the Mississippi River/Gulf of Mexico Hypoxia Task Force.

That state/federal partnership has set a goal of reducing the five-year average to less than 1,900 square miles by 2035.