[Mike]

“Dying phytoplankton have once again sucked all the oxygen out of the
water along a stretch of the Oregon Coast this summer, creating a
hypoxic dead zone that kills any underwater marine life trapped in it.

It is the fifth year in a row that researchers have spotted a dead
zone in Oregon waters. And this year, it’s bigger than ever,
enveloping half of Washington state’s coast as well.

“Something about the system that’s very fundamental has changed,” said
Jane Lubchenco, an Oregon State University marine ecologist who has
studied the phenomenon.”