Gulf Losing Key Fish Habitat

Decommissioned oil platforms and other offshore structures in the Gulf of Mexico play a key role in fisheries production and saltwater fishing opportunities according to the Teddy Roosevelt Outdoor Partnership.

“These decades-old structures offer highly productive and diverse habitats for sportfish, corals, and other marine life and are the best places to offshore fish in the Gulf. But since the year 2000, more than 60% of the offshore oil rigs-turned-reefs have already been removed. In the next decade, as many as 700 more of the remaining rigs – though no longer involved in extraction – could be removed as well, with all signs of the rig and associated reef removed.”

“Recently, bipartisan legislation was introduced to protect the Gulf’s marine ecosystems and ensure saltwater fishing opportunities. The Marine Fisheries Habitat Protection Act would improve existing artificial reefing programs and require an assessment of the relationship between an offshore structure and marine ecosystems, to determine whether retention as an artificial reef, rather than removal, is appropriate.”

Tell Congress to support legislation to protect artificial reefs and our offshore fishing opportunities.