![Gulf Oyster Harvest Has Nose-Dived Since BP Spill](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2012/01/Oysters.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Gulf Oyster Harvest Has Nose-Dived Since BP Spill
HOPEDALE, La. (AP) — Oyster harvests along the Gulf Coast have declined dramatically in the four years since the BP oil spill.
Even after a slight rebound last year, thousands of acres of Louisiana oyster beds are producing less than a third of what they did before the nation's worst offshore oil disaster.
Louisiana used to produce one-third of the nation's oyster harvest — up to 7 million pounds of meat a year. The total haul in 2012 was barely half a million pounds, and last year was back up to almost 1 million.
Whether the spill from a BP PLC well contributed to the decline is part of an ongoing study. The oyster industry had already been under stress before the spill from hurricanes, overfishing and two straight years of oyster-killing fresh water.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
More From News Talk 96.5 KPEL
![Breaux Bridge Man Drowns After Car Plunges into Pond](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-Untitled-design-16-copy.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Louisiana to be Prominently Featured at Republican National Convention](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-RNC-LOGO.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Louisiana Man Indicted On 7 Counts in Murder, Kidnapping Case](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-Screenshot-2024-07-12-at-4.10.22-PM.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Acadiana Single Mom Gifted Car By Lafayette Non Profit](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-Untitled-design-161.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Two Arrested for Church Point, Louisiana ATM Theft](http://townsquare.media/site/34/files/2022/04/attachment-jake-allen-7Q1lhdgbyNU-unsplash.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![CEO of Louisiana Animal Charity Arrested for Child Pornography and Animal Sexual Abuse](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-Untitled-design-16.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Louisiana Man Robbed at Gunpoint in His Own Home](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/01/attachment-Untitled-design-43.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![4th of July Firework Laws for Louisiana and Acadiana](http://townsquare.media/site/33/files/2013/12/Fireworks-Getty.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Police Car Submerges in Louisiana Bayou Following High-Speed Chase](http://townsquare.media/site/36/files/2024/07/attachment-michael-fortsch-y5LaV9IEC_g-unsplash.jpg?w=980&q=75)