The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) Enforcement Division is requesting any leads regarding missing mooring buoys on Independence Island Reef.
Six mooring buoys, which were part of a 2011 restoration project, went missing in late June from the popular fishing spot located about 3 miles northeast of Grand Isle. The buoys are provided to allow fisherman with an identifiable marker of the famed fishing spot.
Anyone with tips or leads can call LDWF’s Operation Game Thief’s (OGT) toll free hotline 1-800-442-2511 or text the LDWF OGT by texting LADWF and their tip to 847411. Tipsters can also download the LADWF Tips iPhone and Android apps from iTunes and Google Play stores free of charge.
Removing buoys brings up a $250 to $500 fine and 90 days in jail.
Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) and LDWF completed construction in 2011 on Independence Island Reef, which is believed to be the largest limestone inshore artificial reef project ever in Louisiana.
Nearly 8,000 tons of limestone were dropped from barges onto four acres where Independence Island was once located. At the time of the project completion, the total site acreage was more than 50 acres.
For more information contact Adam Einck at 225-765-2465 or aeinck@wlf.la.gov.