Joseph Harbor Boat Launch and East End Locks Road to Reopen Oct. 16 at Louisiana’s Rockefeller State Wildlife Refuge

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries 10.15.12

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) today announced completion of a $2.6 million project at Rockefeller State Wildlife Refuge (SWR) that replaced the boat launch and bulkheads at Joseph Harbor and upgraded the East End Locks Road. Both access points will open again Oct. 16 for daily public use from sunrise to sunset.

“Rockefeller is a popular site for recreational fishermen and the improved access will benefit that user group plus boaters and nature watchers wishing to utilize the refuge’s abundant natural resources,” said LDWF Secretary Robert Barham.

The site improvements, three miles east of the refuge headquarters along Hwy. 82, were completed with Rockefeller Trust funds available for maintenance on the refuge.

The improved facilities provide for safer vehicle access to the refuge and boat launching into coastal marshes.

Rockefeller SWR is one of the most biologically diverse wildlife areas in the nation and and attracts over 100,000 visitors annually. Located at the terminus of the vast Mississippi Flyway, south Louisiana winters about four million waterfowl annually. The refuge provides high quality wetlands habitat for ducks, geese, shorebirds and wading birds, spanning 26 miles of coastal Louisiana in Cameron and Vermilion parishes.

An abundant fisheries population provides recreational opportunities to fishermen seeking shrimp, redfish, speckled trout, black drum, and largemouth bass, among others. No hunting is allowed on the refuge, but some regulated trapping is allowed for furbearers that could potentially damage the marsh if their populations are not controlled.

For more information on Rockefeller State Wildlife Refuge, visit the LDWF website at www.wlf.la.gov or call 337-491-2593.

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries – Enforcement Division(LDWF) is the fish & game regulatory agency of Louisiana. It has jurisdictionanywhere in the state, and in state territorial waters. The agency enforces both state and federal laws dealing with hunting, fishing, and boating safety. The agency also enforces criminal laws in rural areas including DWI enforcement both on highways and waterways. Most of the Department’s Wildlife Agents also carry Federal law enforcement commissions issued from the United States Department of the Interior - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and United States Department of Commerce - U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). These federal commissions allow these state officers to enforce federal migratory waterfowl laws and federal marine fisheries laws in state and federal waters off the coast of Louisiana. Besides their traditional role as a “game warden”, Louisiana Wildlife Enforcement Agents also have a number of other responsibilities, including conducting board of health inspections on some portions of the state’s commercial fishing industry. Agents are trained in and conduct numerous search and rescue operations, both in remote land areas and on the state’s waterways. Agents ensure that hunters, anglers, boaters, dealers, breeders, farmers, and transporters are in compliance with regulations governing equipment, quotas, licenses, and registrations. Agents also assist other State departments and law enforcement agencies in the coordination of educational and professional endeavors, as well as national and state emergency alerts by the Federal Office of Emergency Preparedness. In addition, agents perform search and rescue missions alone or in conjunction with other local, state, and federal agencies.