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Gulf Guardian Award Winners 2003
Government Category - 1st Place
| Project #: | GG-03-37 | |
| Company: | Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, Biloxi, MS | |
| Project Name: | Derelict Crab Trap Removal Program | |
| Category: | Government | |
| Project Type: | Habitat | |
| Average Rating: | 17.667 |
Initiated in late 1999 jointly with the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, the derelict crab trap removal program was set up to address the problem with derelict crab traps in the Mississippi Sound. A derelict trap can be defined as a trap, which is un-buoyed, unmarked, and not actively fished. These trap are lost due to many factors including the cutting of floats by boat propellers, being caught in shrimp trawls, and storms. The Department of Marine Resources along with the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory made a cooperative effort to address the problem with derelict traps in Mississippi waters. Since the start of this project the DMR has removed 3,600 traps in the waters of the Mississippi Sound by agency efforts alone and through the help of volunteers during the first ever Mississippi closed season for crab traps another 1,454 lost traps were retrieved in only five days (January 21-25, 2003). These traps are recycled at a local scrap metal facility.
