Louisiana's minority fishermen say any prejudices or differences they normally feel have taken a back seat to issues facing the entire fishing community as members sop up oil. BP's Vessels of Opportunity program or VoO has employed some of the shrimpers and oyster men from different heritages and races that normally trawl the state's coast.

Byron Encalade, the African-American owner of Encalade Fisheries in East Pointe a la Hache in Plaquemines Parish, said "right now I don't care if you are Asian, Black, Native American or Hispanic, all of the fishermen in Southeast Louisiana are in the same circumstances. Blacks have the history of bad laws and bad policies, and Asian Americans have the language barrier that's kept them from the front lines at times. But we're all worried about our livelihoods now." Encalade is president of the Louisiana Oystermen Association.

He said one major gripe is that many, vessel-owning, local fishermen are sitting home, waiting to be called up by BP, while recreational boats from Texas and Florida float along the Louisiana Gulf  --  working in the VoO. Boats hired by BP lay protective boom, skim oil off water, move supplies and help with wildlife rescues.

One of Encalade's boats is employed by VoO, doing oil-cleanup several days in, several days out near the coast. He said "some of the VoO boats I see aren't from here and they're not commercial fishermen. They're recreational boats. They were hired by BP because of image or some other reason. But we're the ones who know our waters, and we want to get them clean."

Encalade said bringing out-of-state boats in under VoO costs more, and asks "why pay extra for them?" He said "BP will spend an additional $100 million here, $50 million there, and you know the day's coming when they say there's no money left. Costs are climbing in this cleanup the way FEMA ran them up after Katrina." Federal Emergency Management Agency's, multi-billion-dollar tab for hurricane recovery from Katrina and Rita included substantial costs for out-of-state contractors.

At BP, spokesman Mark Proegler said his company is trying to use local boats. "We have revised our Vessels of Opportunity policy to prioritize local, owner-operated, commercial and charter vessels and their crews," he said. "Going forward, our intent is that recreational boats are only used by exception, when no other vessel is suitable or available." Proegler said that BP wants to match boats to specific needs, and has no particular image in mind for the vessels it uses.

"We have over 5,000 commercial and charter fishing vessels now contracted and in our pool that are available to put on the water," Proegler said "On average, 3,000 vessels are in the water daily across the Gulf Coast, and over 85 percent of them are registered as commercial and charter fishing vessels." Boats used in the VoO program must have been registered before March 31 as commercial vessels in the state where they will be employed, he said.

The VoO pays $1,200 to $3,000 per boat daily, depending on the size of the vessel. Deck hands receive $200 for an eight-hour shift and $300 for 12 hours. That money, fishermen say, is enough to have attracted people from other professions, like teachers, to the program this summer.

To qualify for the VoO, boat operators and crews complete four hours of training; pass a dockside, U.S. Coast Guard exam; and meet crew requirements based on vessel size. Boats have to be certified as safe. If a vessel passes those tests and is needed in the cleanup, it will be put to work.

Native American shrimper Lance Nacio, who owns Anna Marie Seafood in Dulac in Terrebonne Parish, said his boat is one of 22 VoOs mopping up oil near BP's damaged well site. He said Asian American, Black and Native American vessel owners are working near the well. But he believes that, because of a language barrier, Asian fishermen have not been called up by BP as often as their numbers in Southeast Louisiana would warrant.

State and parish officials and BP continue to address language issues that affect workers filing documents, spill-related meetings and employment. For the VoO program "enrollment, training and materials are provided in English, and supported by translators as needed for Vietnamese, Spanish and Khmer native speakers," Proegler said. Khmer is the national language of Cambodia.

Louisiana Congressman Joseph Cao has pressed BP and federal agencies involved in the spill response to recruit certified interpreters and translators-especially bilingual specialists versed in the native language of people they are assisting-Cao's office said. Many Vietnamese fishermen live within Cao's district, particularly in the New Orleans East communities of Versailles and Village de L'Est, and he runs a phone hotline for Vietnamese-Americans hurt by the oil disaster.

Meanwhile, Louisiana's fishermen are fearful about their futures, and in a double-whammy some of them have been working simultaneously in the petroleum industry-where jobs are shrinking.

Dr. Anil Kukreja, professor and business division chairman at Xavier University, said "I hope that minority fishermen and all fishermen affected by the spill are given an opportunity for retraining, with government incentives like tuition credits and reimbursement for classes in construction, shipbuilding or any industry they'd like to work in."

Fishermen looking for new careers can tap state and federal resources. The Louisiana Workforce Commission will use a $10 million federal grant to retrain and give other re-employment help to 4,500 spill-affected workers. And fisherman can enroll in workforce development programs, with language translators, run by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce.

Encalade said the coastal work force has become more diversified in recent decades. "A hundred years ago, Louisiana's fishing communities may have been isolated, but that's all changed. We've produced doctors, lawyers, nurses and many other professionals." He would like decision makers in the spill response to listen to fishermen more. Encalade said an idea that fishermen floated two months ago was to ask BP for six-month, lump-sum payments, and he noted that Kenneth Feinberg, the new fund administrator for claims against BP, has recently voiced support for lump payments.

"We're not in the business of crucifying BP," Encalade said. "That's up to the government and Supreme Court. What we care about is getting oil out of the water. The local fishing community is suffering and we've all got the same grievances."

This article was originally published in the July 5, 2010 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper