Interesting Items

Around the Gulf…

The state of Alabama is considering a ban on gill nets in state waters. Gill nets, so called because they entangle fish by the gills, are used primarily to fish for Spanish mackerel and mullet. The nets can be up to half a mile long. At present their use is unrestricted, which scientists say is causing “localized depletion” of some species in Alabama waters. Commercial fishermen contend that the available data are insufficient to support that conclusion and are pressing the legislature to order further studies before taking action to ban the nets. Commercial fishermen generally oppose the ban, while recreational fishermen generally support it. Alabama is the only Gulf state that has not banned or severely restricted gill nets.

Mississippi governor Haley Barbour has signed an insurance wind-pool bill that legislators hope will expedite post-Katrina rebuilding by enticing private insurance companies to resume writing policies for coastal properties. Many private insurers had pulled out of the coast after the storm, leaving prospective builders with only the fiscally unsteady, and very expensive, wind pool option. In addition to beefing up the wind pool with new state money, the bill will allow private insurers to recoup their Katrina losses via a temporary monthly fee on all policyholders statewide, and will give tax breaks to insurance companies that voluntarily return to the coast.

The state of Louisiana has released its official Team Louisiana report on the levee failures following Hurricane Katrina. Team Louisiana, which is composed of engineers and scientists from Louisiana State University and the private sector, analyzed the decisions that set the stage for the post-Katrina catastrophe and laid the bulk of the blame on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The team catalogued years of Corps missteps in research, engineering, construction, and maintenance of the levee system, and calls for further state and federal investigation into the failures so that the system can be improved. The report and associated documents can be downloaded at
http://www.publichealth.hurricane.lsu.edu/TeamLA.htm.

Over one thousand acres in Gulf Shores, Alabama, have been designated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as critical habitat for the endangered Alabama beach mouse. The designation protects the habitat, which encompasses some of Baldwin County’s few remaining natural beaches, from development. As is often the case with critical habitat designations, the Service’s action was hastened by litigation from environmental groups and opposed by developers.

Around the country…

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has announced that twenty-eight states will share over $13 million in grants under the Clean Vessel Act. The grants may be used by state agencies to build and operate sewage disposal facilities for recreational boaters. Adequate disposal facilities help preserve water quality. The program is funded by taxes on fishing and boating gear, and boat fuels. Mississippi’s Department of Marine Resources will receive $144,980 from the program, enough to finance nine disposal facilities.