Congressman joins fight to stop gulf fish poaching

MADEIRA BEACH -- Fish poaching has become a major problem for Gulf Coast-based commercial fishermen, and one Congressman is ready to help.

U.S. Rep. David Jolly, R-Indian Shores, joined commercial fisherman at a Gulf Coast Leadership Conference event Wednesday calling on the federal government to take a more aggressive stance against illegal fishing vessels from Mexico.

“Illegal fishing is a direct threat to the livelihoods of thousands of hardworking Americans along the Gulf Coast, and we must do more to protect our coastal economies, our coastal businesses, and our fishermen,” Jolly says, in a release.

A Congressional bill that would strengthen penalties and laws around poaching has stalled in the U.S. House, the fishermen say.

The foreign vessels are entering U.S. sovereign waters and illegally poaching hundreds to thousands of fish at a time, fishing industry members say. The U.S. Coast Guard and law enforcement agencies have been hunting down those poachers, but they simply cannot keep up.

The Gulf of Mexico's commercial and recreational fishing industries contribute more than $30 billion annually to the region's economy, the fishermen claim. That supports 82,000 jobs and $17 billion in sales.

Pinellas County alone accounts for nearly two-thirds of domestic red grouper, and nearly half of all gag groupers.

Jason de la Cruz, who purchased Wild Seafood Co. in 2011 at John's Pass, says despite efforts his company has made to help conserve fish populations, he is still losing out to poachers.

“Fishermen in the United States have made great sacrifices to rebuild and maintain fish populations in the Gulf of Mexico,” de la Cruz says, in a release. “Foreign pirates know that, so they're sneaking into our waters to steal our fish, which undercuts our conservation efforts and detracts from fishing-related businesses around the Gulf.

The Coast Guard estimates that Mexican boats make more than 1,100 incursions into American waters every year, according to the commercial fishermen. That allows those poachers to capture up to 760,000 pounds of red snapper alone. If they are caught, the Coast Guard will confiscate their boat, and deport them back to Mexico, where they simply acquire a new boat and repeat the process.

“We deserve fresh-caught, domestic wild fish that is harvested sustainably and cared for properly by trusted professional fishermen and processors,” de la Cruz says. “We all need to tell our legislators that's what we want, and they need to step up efforts to protect small businesses by cracking down on illegal fishing in the gulf.”