2/15/10 Grouper ban hurts restaurants & fishermen

Saltwater Offshore Reports
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http://www.examiner.com/x-37128-Charlotte-Fishing-Examiner~y2010m2d15-Grouper-ban-hurts-Myrtle-Beach-restaurants-and-fishermen

Grouper ban hurts Myrtle Beach restaurants and fishermen
February 15, 10:14 AM Charlotte Fishing Examiner Jeffrey Weeks

A four month grouper ban is hurting Myrtle Beach restaurants and fishermen.

A four-month ban which prohibits commercial and recreational fishermen from keeping grouper is hurting anglers and restaurants in the Grand Strand area of South Carolina and causing economic hardships on the seafood industry in Myrtle Beach.

“The people that’s deciding how I live ain’t got a clue about what’s going on in that ocean,” Captain Reese Hair of Murrells Inlet told the Myrtle Beach Sun. “They have no idea what I go through. It’s killing the prices. It’s killing the restaurants. It’s killing the mechanics that work on our boats. We’re going to be out of business before long.”

The ban on grouper fishing started January 1 and runs through April 30. It was enacted by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council and prohibits fishermen from keeping grouper caught in federal and state waters of the Atlantic Ocean from North Carolina to Key West, Florida.

The ban was extremely unpopular among recreational and commercial fishermen who make a living off of grouper.

Florida recreational grouper guide Andy Griffiths attended the meeting in Charleston, SC where the ban was voted on.

“It was like attending an execution,” Griffiths told Keywestnews.com.

Federal fishery officials and environmental conservationists pushed the ban to protect grouper during their main spawning season because the species is believed to be overfished.

“It’s truly affected us,” said Ted Hammerman who owns the Mr. Fish Seafood market in Myrtle Beach and sells grouper bait to fishermen. “(We) sell at least two to four tons of bait a week, and we’re now selling two tons a month at best.”

Myrtle Beach restaurants have been forced to import grouper from places like Mexico to keep the popul

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I took my wife to Frank’s in PI on Valentines Day. My favorite dish there is the grouper but when they couldn’t tell me where it came from, I couldn’t get it. Its sad when the Seafood Capital of SC has to import its fish from other locations.

Mark
Mako 262 Twin Yammaha F200s
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.

“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne

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quote:
Originally posted by saltydog235

I took my wife to Frank’s in PI on Valentines Day. My favorite dish there is the grouper but when they couldn’t tell me where it came from, I couldn’t get it. Its sad when the Seafood Capital of SC has to import its fish from other locations.

Mark
Mako 262 Twin Yammaha F200s
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.

“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne

What’s even sadder is that there are more grouper out there right now than in the last 30 years.

“Tigress” '88 Mako 211
Luke 8:22-25

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I ate at Frank’s Fri night, had the quail. Too many cats running around that place.

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i was at a restraunt the other night that will remain nameless and they had red snapper on the menu. i said is this fresh local snapper to the waiter and he said it was. i commenced to inform him he had no idea what he was talking about and might want to learn where his fish is coming from before he lies to customers

Team Allure Fishing
183 ranger ghost
www.zmanfishing.com

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Many can still serve “fresh local snapper”, but you are likely getting vermillion.

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You mean that commercial harvest of fresh local B liners is allowed right now?
(sarcasm)
That’s strange. I hear that if I harvested even one single B liner right now, I’d be breaking the law.

Meanwhile, scamp grouper harvest is prohibited for commercial and recreational fishermen right now despite their being on the sustainable seafood list.

Makes you wonder how all these decisions get made, huh?

“Tigress” '88 Mako 211
Luke 8:22-25

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Actually, here is a glimse into the decision making process:

Land on white and you get a new commercial regulation. Land on red for recreationals. Numbers less than 5 are bag limits. Numbers greater than 5 is the day of the month that it will be implemented.