Louisiana Seafood Products
As we have all been hearing about on the nightly news, the April 20th rupture of the Deepwater Horizons Drillsite off the Gulf Coast of Mexico is proving to become an incredibly challenging and traumatic event for local wildlife, fisherman, and the people of Louisiana. While this issue may not seem relevant to those living outside of this area, the consequences could be extreme, and ultimately effect every American seafood lover.
President Obama took a visit to the area this week to give a comment on the current state of the situation, stating that the spill is a “potentially unprecedented environmental disaster.”
Current Oil Spill Site
The map above was published May 1st, showing the oil that continues to spill from the rig at 5,000 barrels/day has hit the natural wetlands that make up 25% of America’s total wetland ecosystem. Aside from the various species of indigenous birds and plantlife that may be killed off due to the spill, it is the Seafood industry that will have to endure some serious economic travesties on account of this oily disaster.
Louisiana has a $2.4 Billion seafood industry, supplying not only the Gulf Coast with abundant amounts of Oysters, Shrimp, Tuna, and Crab, but also the rest of the United States. As of now, the seafood industry has been working hard to communicate that their fish is still safe to eat, however, as the oil continues to flow, industrial buyers are considering switching their business to North-Eastern fish distributors, for fear of safe products and rising prices.
It is hard to predict the true future of the Gulf Coast fishing industry, as methods to divert the oil flow are already underway. The important question is, are rubber booms sufficient enough to save the future of Seafood Gumbo? Only time will tell..
Better start praying...
For more information and updates on the current status of the oil spill, please visit: Here
