Ecuador faces severe marine deoxygenation as El Niño 2026 intensifies

Scientists warn that warming, agricultural runoff and altered water circulation are causing an accelerating loss of dissolved oxygen in oceans, rivers and lakes worldwide, potentially pushing these ecosystems beyond a planetary boundary and expanding dead zones that can affect climate.

In Ecuador, projections for an extreme El Niño event in 2026 indicate a surface‑water temperature rise of up to 3.6 °C, suppressing nutrient‑rich upwelling, reducing phytoplankton, and triggering a cascade that threatens fish, marine mammals, seabirds and artisanal fisheries, especially around the Galápagos. Researcher María José Marín Jarrín of ESPOL notes a 90 % chance the event will be among the strongest on record.