Seafood production in the region has been severely impacted by large scale fish die-offs . The Deepwater Horizon oil spill , which occurred in the spring and summer of 2010 — along with the presence of toxic sediments stirred up by Hurricane Katrina and record amounts of fresh water diverted into the Bonnet Carre Spillway in Louisiana — have brought seafood production to a standstill . Offshore oyster beds were hit especially hard . Field crews have reported a 50 percent to 65 percent mortality rate in some areas . An even greater mortality rate of 90 percent to 95 percent has been seen in other oyster beds . According to research from The Nature Conservancy , “ roughly 13 years ago , Mississippi was harvesting nearly 500,000 sacks of oysters annually .... ” Today , those numbers have fallen as low as 3,500 sacks annually
Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Pass Christian, Mississippi