Decades of commercial overfishing, along with oil and gas exploration and refining, hurricanes and last year’s BP spill are the most common threats faced by fish of the Gulf. Mike Wood, director of inland fisheries for the LDWF, discussed the incident’s toll on Gulf sturgeon, which were already threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. He added that fortunately, most of the sturgeons’ breeding population was not in the Pearl River at the time of the spill.
Wood said that the Bogalusa plant discharge was mostly confined to the channel of the Pearl River. Once contaminated water entered the mouth of the river at Lake Borgne, it dispersed and became less and less concentrated. The problem happened to Pearl River fish has been addressed with much concern.
In mid-September, Louisiana authorities said that the Pearl River is now safe for fish and shellfish consumption based on sampling. Taylor Jones, endangered species advocate with conservation group WildEarth Guardians in Denver, Colo., said FWS found other threats — levee and canal construction; oil exploration and refining and their consequences, including the 2010 BP spill; the dockside gaming or gambling industry; rising sea water; inadequate regulatory protection and human population growth.
Bluefin tuna is a “species of concern” and white marlin is a “former species of concern,” according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Species of concern are those that NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service is watching but doesn’t have enough data on to list under the Endangered Species Act.
