Printable VersionLa. fishermen take delivery of St. Bernard/Plaquemines industrial ice machine
Who: Governor Kathleen Blanco
Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board
Shell Oil Company
Louisiana Sea Grant College Program
Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Foundation
What: Press Conference
Demonstration of Ice-Making Equipment Donated to Fishing Community
When: Wednesday, August 23
2:30 PM
Where: 4000 block of Paris Road
Chalmette, LA
St. Bernard Parish vehicle depot
Why: The Gulf Coast hurricanes of 2005 caused $1 billion worth of infrastructure damage to the $2.3 billion Louisiana fishing industry. The Louisiana coast is home to three of the ten largest U.S. fishing docks, yet, no federal funds have yet made it to the industry for infra-structure. The storm-related destruction of ice-making and ice storage capacity has been a significant obstacle to re-starting operations. Ice is used to preserve the catch on the boats, at shore side facilities, and during transport of product to market, yet the current ice-making capacity along the coast is not near pre-Katrina/Rita capacity.
Shell has worked with the Louisiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board, the LSU Ag Center, the Louisiana Sea Grant College Program, and the Louisiana Wildlife & Fisheries Foundation to facilitate the donation of icehouses to serve St. Bernard, Plaquemines, Orleans and St. Tammany Parishes in the eastern part of the state and Cameron Parish in the west. The $500,000 donation will enable the purchase, delivery and installation of industrial ice machines and ice storage bins.
Media Contacts:
Ewell Smith, 504-214-3985, ewell@louisianaseafood.com
Betsy Stephenson, 703-282-6546, betsy.stephenson@dittus.com
2006-MA2