The remote Marquesas Keys, where marine garbage and abandoned refugee rafts mar once-pristine shores, sorely needs a major cleanup, says Lower Keys commercial fisherman Don DeMaria.
And that is the type of project that may be possible under a proposed federal stimulus program to help commercial fishermen.
A U.S. House of Representatives bill, the Coastal Jobs Creation Act of 2010, calls for $400 million to help waterfront communities hurt by the slumping economy and new fishing regulations. The bill was introduced Tuesday but remains far from approval.
DeMaria joined representatives of conservation groups in Washington, D.C., this week to lobby for the bill, HB 4914.
"This is one of the few things to come out of Washington in a while that makes a lot of sense," DeMaria said.
The Coastal Jobs Creation Act seeks $80 million annually for a five-year period to "promote coastal jobs creation, promote sustainable fisheries and fishing communities [and] revitalize waterfronts."
Read the complete story at Keys Net.