Refuge was shut down after BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Effectively immediately, Breton National Wildlife Refuge is reopened to public visitation and use, under normal refuge regulations. Nesting periods for colonial seabirds and shorebirds have ended, and visitors may now access beach areas of the refuge.
Remnants of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill have been cleaned to the point that they no longer pose a threat to wildlife in these areas.
Travel through vegetated areas of the islands is still discouraged so as to limit habitat damage, and visitors must heed all signs posted on the refuge.
The reopening includes access on the islands, and boating and fishing in the waters surrounding Breton National Wildlife Refuge. The waters are managed cooperatively with Louisiana’s Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries. Camping on the islands is not permitted.
Established in 1904, Breton is the second-oldest refuge in the National Wildlife Refuge System. It includes the Chandeleur Islands and other islands arrayed in a broad arc across the coastal waters of St. Bernard and Plaquemines Parishes in Louisiana.
Breton attracts anglers from around the country They venture to Breton from the Louisiana and Mississippi coasts on their own vessels or on charters to enjoy some of the best coastal fishing in the world. Speckled trout, red drum, flounder, cobia, mackerel, white trout, shark, black drum, tarpon and numerous other species provide year-round fishing excitement. A wide variety of bird species may also be observed and photographed by visitors to the islands.
