On a beach in northwestern Venezuela's Puerto Cabello, near the El Palito refinery, the sand and rocks along the shore are stained with thick, dark puddles. "It's now been eight days that we're practically unemployed because we can't go out to fish," says Venezuelan fisherman Antonio Giusti, standing in front of an oil-soaked boat. With an oil spill affecting fishing and tourism in the region, some fishermen are taking the environmental issue into their own hands while waiting for state oil giant PDVSA to help. "PDVSA told us that once we finish cleaning the sea, they will send someone to clean our boats," Giusti adds. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES