NOAA reopens large section of Gulf of mexico to fishing

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has reopened a large section of the Gulf of Mexico to commercial and recreational fishing.
NOAA re-opened nearly 27 thousand square miles of fishing areas on Thursday which is nearly a third of the area that has been closed for months because of the BP oil gusher.
Since mid-June, NOAA data have shown no oil in the re-opened area, and United States Coast Guard observers flying over the area in last 30 days have also not observed any oil.
Trajectory models also show the area is at a low risk for future exposure to oil, and fish caught in the area and tested by NOAA experts have shown no signs of contamination.
At its closest point, the area to be reopened is about 190 miles southeast of the Deepwater/BP wellhead, and the area where the majority of fishing will occur is about 220 miles from the wellhead, along the west Florida shelf.
NOAA will continue to take samples for testing from the newly re-opened area, and the agency has also implemented dockside sampling to test fish caught throughout the Gulf by commercial fishermen.


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