Docking and Repair Facilities 



Access to adequate docking and repair facilities is of car- 

 dinal importance to the success of fishing operations. Where boat 

 oimers operate independently they usually unload at the docking 

 facilities of the raw shrimp plant which is buying their catch. Fleet 

 affiliated boats are usually operated by processors who have docking 

 facilities of their own. In these instances, all operations may be 

 performed at the waterfront. Where dock space is at a premium pro- 

 cessing facilities are usually located some distance from the place 

 of landing. By" the nature of their operations freezers and breaders 

 require a considerable amount of space. Tttese operations consequently 

 are seldom integrated with raw shrimp plant operations. 



Concentration of shrimping activities in the area has made 

 tne city of Brownsville, Texas, lay claim to the title of "Shrimp 

 Capitol of tne World." Remarkable strides have been made here in 

 establishing a port which is particularly adaptable to shrimping 

 operations. The harbor is designed especially for shrimp boats and 

 is built in such a x^ay as to make docking and accessibility to the 

 fish house nearly ideal. The shrimp basin is operated by the Browns- 

 ville Port Authority which is supported by the users of the basin. 

 Charges of ^1.00 per day per boat are made for docking. This charge 

 is paid by the boat owner. Fish houses pay $1.00 per foot each month 

 for water front space. A fee of one percent of selling price is ap- 

 plied to shrimp unloaded over the dock, and a charge is also made for 

 fuel and ice. In spite of these added expenses, users appear to be 

 well satisfied witn the basin. Their only complaint is that the 

 basin is perhaps located too far from the open Gulf. Boats must travel 

 1$ miles from the basin to reach open water- 



Repairs of minor character are usually handled by the more 

 experienced crews themselves, either while at sea or during stopovers 

 at tne dock. The rapid expansion of slirimp production in recent years, 

 however, has led to the employment of many inexperienced crews which 

 has had its effect on boat and equipment maintenance. The trend towards 

 longer trips and more expensive complicated mechanical installations 

 has magnified the maintenance and repair problem. The surveys con- 

 ducted by the Bureau of Business and Economic Research of the Univer- 

 sity of Miami, by Harwell, Knowles and Associates, and by First Research 

 Corporation of Florida, stressed the serious consequences of the incom- 

 petence of crews. Inefficient help places additional emphasis on the 

 availability of adequate repair facilities in port. Not all ports 

 have been able to measure up to the demands placed upon them by the 

 Increased activities based on their docks. 



FISHT5RMEM 



Boat Ownership 



Ownership control of the shrimp fleet is vested in different 

 interest groups. Boats may either be individually owned and operated. 



loU 



