New Video Features Fishermen of the Oceanic Fish Restoration Project
A new video from the Oceanic Fish Restoration Project (OFRP) highlights the voices of fishermen from around the Gulf of Mexico, as the six-year project enters its final stage this year.
Gulf fishermen participated in the project by voluntarily refraining from open ocean, or pelagic, fishing and using alternative fishing gear types for part of each year from 2017 to 2022. The final participation phase wrapped up in 2022, and NOAA will complete the final data analysis and share it with the public later this year.
The goal of the project was to reduce fish mortality in order to allow species impacted by the 2010 oil spill to better grow and reproduce. This in turn helps support healthier populations of pelagic fish throughout the Gulf.
The project has helped nearly 35,000pelagic fish such as yellowfin and bluefin tuna to remain in the Gulf of Mexico.
