Department of Commerce
National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration
National Marine Fisheries Service
- Office of Law Enforcement

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sept. 17, 2007

NOAA FISHERIES SERVICE AWARDS $100,000 TO PUERTO RICO FOR ADDITIONAL MARINE ENFORCEMENT PATROLS

The NOAA Fisheries Service Office of Law Enforcement is providing $100,000 to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico’s Department of Natural and Environmental Resources to increase enforcement of fisheries regulations at-sea, dock-side and on land over the next year.

Through joint enforcement agreement, the DNER will conduct nearly 2,560 hours of marine patrols, primarily near-shore and dockside of the Commonwealth. Monitoring of fishing vessels and inspections of catches and fishing gear at sea will occur as part of these patrols. Inspections will check for compliance with applicable federal regulations of marine species frequent to Puerto Rico. In addition, the funding will go towards the purchase of equipment and vehicles to assist in the enforcement of fisheries regulations.

“The health and vitality of Caribbean marine ecosystems depend on our ability to enforce federal fisheries regulations, which makes this an important partnership with the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico,” said Bill Hogarth, director of NOAA Fisheries Service. “This agreement will allow us to expand enforcement efforts to protect Puerto Rico’s valuable marine resources, its law-abiding fishermen and its economy.”

NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement has joint enforcement agreements with 27 coastal states and territories, providing more than $15.6 million this year to strengthen state and federal fisheries enforcement.

“This agreement was a long time coming, but at the end of the day we will be more effective in our joint efforts to protect and preserve Puerto Rico’s fragile marine resources and their habitat,” said Special Agent-in-Charge Hal Robbins of OLE’s Southeast Division.

Seven southeastern states and one U.S. territory have joint enforcement agreements with NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement , including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas and the U.S Virgin Islands. Over the past four years, these states and territory have received over $29 million combined to assist in federal fishery enforcement.

“Through this agreement, we will expand enforcement of federal regulations and increase our capability to protect reef fish and invertebrates, highly migratory species and endangered species off Puerto Rico,” said OLE Deputy Director Mark Spurrier.

NOAA is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and information service delivery for transportation, and by providing environmental stewardship of our nation's coastal and marine resources. Through the emerging Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), NOAA is working with its federal partners, more than 70 countries and the European Commission to develop a global monitoring network that is as integrated as the planet it observes, predicts and protects.