The deputy director of the Office of Marine Fisheries in Mississippi keeps a contact list of major media outlets and the press, and if he sees something wrong with the state’s monthly seafood samples from the Gulf, the first thing he will do is call reporters.
“I’m not going into this with blinders on, and I’m not going to ignore any data results,” said Jewell, who has been working at the department for almost 14 years. “Our number-one concern is the safety of the public and the consumption of seafood. If any of these samples come back bad, I’ll step up to bat.”
The uncertainty over seafood safety has been a concern since the Deepwater Horizon oil spill April 20. The waters were immediately closed to fishing or catching, and thousands of people were out of a job. Only a small portion of the waters, approximately 4%, is still closed.
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