Government threw a lifeline to Bermuda?s floundering fishing industry by making diesel fuel duty-free yesterday.

In her Budget, Finance Minister Paula Cox also announced Government:

Would spend $300,000 to research whether Bermuda fish should be exported; and

Earmarked $785,000 for a shore-side facility at Marginal Wharf, St. David?s.

?Diesel fuel is killing some guys who pay $450 per trip out to the Banks? fisherman Andrew Faries said yesterday when informed of the change.

Mr. Faries said with increased oil prices around the world, fishermen had ?unfairly? been saddled with diesel fuel prices that were effectively double the price elsewhere due to the hefty customs tariff.

?We were giving Government $250 per trip,? Mr. Faries said. ?The price of fish is going through the roof to justify it.?

Environment Neletha Butterfield said yesterday that the fishing windfall stemmed from last year?s White Paper on the Marine Environment and the Fishing Industry.

?As you can recall we did talk with the fishermen during the Green Paper as well as the White Paper and there were some things they requested. Through their requests we are meeting their needs.

?One of those needs was that they wanted a facility at each end,? Ms Butterfield said, referring to the plans to established the shoreside facility at Marginal Wharf. ?We do have a consultant coming on board that will make their wishes be met.?

The shoreside fishing facility will support both offshore and current fishing activities, Ms Cox said, with flake ice, blast-freezing and cold storage.

Her Ministry also consulted with the three representatives for the fishermen on the Marine Resources Board (MRB), she added.

Neither MRB chairman David Pantry nor deputy chairman Allen Bean Jr. could be reached for comment yesterday.

?The package will include access to duty-free diesel fuel as well as concessions on ice chests for storage of freshly caught fish and on packaging materials for transport and distribution of seafood,? the Finance Minister said of full-time commercial fishermen. ?The long-term objective would be to increase the local production of fresh fish, to explore export potential, and to provide employment opportunities for Bermudians.?

The Environment Minister also promised that an additional $72,000 earmarked for increased staff in the Development Control section of the Department of Planning would include an Enforcement Officer.

?It will include an Enforcement Officer simply because there is so much development going on today,? she said. ?In fact we are looking now to second someone in the Ministry to help with the Enforcement.?

The Ministry of the Environment was budgeted $25 million in 2006/07 to sustain Bermuda?s inter-connected environment.

Government also provided $600,000 to buy or improve open spaces ? and exempted stamp duty costs on open-spaces purchases.