With the upcoming boating season, Marine Patrol will be doing their part to help boaters prepare by conducting courtesy boat and water safety inspections, as well as advising on safety equipment deficiencies.

Tags can be purchased at numerous marine equipment location, such as A&A Marine Hardware on Second Street in Pass Christian.  Additionally, all harbors along the Mississippi Gulf Coast have access to these signs.

In an effort to reduce marine litter, officers will also help educate boaters on how to properly stow their trash, what is an acceptable trash receptacle for their vessel and that each vessel displays the Title 22 Part 10 signage regarding the illegal disposal of garbage.

Officers will be at the following locations from 8 a.m. until 12 p.m.:

  • March 29 – Yazoo Point in Pascagoula and Gulfport Harbor
  • April 6 – Ocean Springs Harbor and Long Beach Harbor
  • April 13 – D’Iberville Marina and Washington Street Boat Ramp in Bay St. Louis
  • April 20 – Lighthouse Park Boat Ramp in Pascagoula and Bayou Caddy Boat Ramp
  • April 27 – Kuhn Street Boat Ramp in Biloxi and Henderson Point Boat Ramp

The 28th annual Celebrate the Gulf Marine Education Festival, along with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality’s Waterfest, will be held Saturday, April 6, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at War Memorial Park in Pass Christian. This free and educational event features activities for the whole family and includes hands-on exhibits that teach the benefits of a healthy Gulf of Mexico.

In addition to free schooner rides, Celebrate the Gulf will feature the Raptor Bird Show, hands-on activities, caricatures, a photobooth, signed festival poster, a kids’ fishing rodeo, over 35 environmental exhibits, door prize opportunities and the Student Science Showcase, which is dedicated to showcasing our coast’s young scientists.

Celebrate the Gulf is held in conjunction with Art in the Pass, which will also take place at War Memorial Park April 6 and 7 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Both events are free and open to the public.

Sponsors for Celebrate the Gulf are the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, MDEQ, Chevron, Coastal Conservation Association, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Secretary of State of Mississippi.