Cleveland on the state of fishing in the Gulf
Had a chance Wednesday to ask one of the most respected marine biologists for the Gulf of Mexico about the impact of oil that continues to escape from a blown-out well.
Jim Franks’ immediate answer couldn’t have been worse, at least not for me.
“The bottom dwellers, like oyster, crab and flounder, are probably among the most vulnerable,” said Franks, senior research scientist for the Center for Fisheries Research and Development at the Gulf Coast Research Lab in Ocean Springs. “Obviously, we don’t know anything for sure because there’s so many uncertainties about this whole situation. We don’t know how much oil, if any, will get into our waters, and, if we get any, we have no idea what kind it will be and how long it will be here.
“But, if we get oil, it will eventually settle to the bottom, and get into the mud where species like oysters and flounder live and eat. It has been shown in studies that those species are among the impacted species.”
Clarion Ledger
Magnolia Tribune
