Federal Fisheries Managers Address Proposed Regulations During Meeting Week
Management of blueline tilefish along the East Coast, Spawning Special Management Zones, red snapper, and more…
Regulations for blueline tilefish, protection of spawning areas for snapper grouper species, stock assessments for red snapper and gray triggerfish, management measures for king mackerel, issues affecting management in South Florida, and continued improvements for data collection represent the diversity of topics on the agenda during last week's meeting of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council. Federal fishery managers met in St. Simons Island, GA to address these issues and more.
One of the more controversial issues arose when the Council addressed management of blueline tilefish, a deepwater species targeted by both commercial and recreational fishermen. A stock assessment conducted in 2013 determined the blueline tilefish stock was undergoing overfishing (the rate of removal is too high). The Council requested temporary emergency action from NOAA Fisheries to reduce harvest and began development of Amendment 32 to the Snapper Grouper Fishery Management Plan to end overfishing. Approved by the South Atlantic Council in December 2014, the amendment would further reduce the annual catch limit (ACL) for blueline tilefish to 35,632 pounds for 2015, implement a commercial trip limit of 100 pounds (gutted weight), and a recreational bag limit of one blueline tilefish per vessel per day from May through August. Recreational harvest would be prohibited the rest of the year. The new regulations are expected to be in place by Mid-April from the NC/VA border southward to the east coast of FL.
Although the blueline tilefish stock is currently treated as one unit along the entire East Coast, the new regulations would only apply to vessels in the South Atlantic Council's area of jurisdiction. Concerns about rapidly increasing commercial and party/charter landings of blueline tilefish north of the NC/V