A brief and limited season on catching red snapper in the Atlantic Ocean could open sometime later this year based on the terms reached by a federal panel meeting in Orlando on Wednesday.
The snapper/grouper committee of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council decided on two recommendations that could open the door for red snapper fishing for the first time in more than two years.
The first is a proposed emergency rule that would allow recreational fishermen to take one red snapper each during special three-day seasons as early as this fall and allow a limited number of mini-seasons for commercial fishermen. The emergency rule proposes to allow a total catch of 13,067 fish, including the fish caught by both recreational and commercial fishermen.
The second is a proposed amendment to the current snapper rules that also may allow limited snapper fishing seasons next year.
Both recommendations will be considered by the council Friday morning. The council’s weeklong meeting is taking place at the Renaissance Orlando Airport Hotel.
A federal ban was imposed on catching red snapper in January 2010 after federal scientists concluded snapper were being over-fished. The ban was highly controversial with fishermen here and elsewhere along the coast from North Carolina to South Florida protesting the decision and saying there were still plenty of big snapper.
At this point, fishermen and federal officials believe the stocks of red snapper could be in better shape than they were in 2009. They still don’t agree on details for how the ocean could be reopened for snapper fishing.
But the measures approved Wednesday “are a start,” said David Nelson, with Reel Deal Offshore Fishing Charters out of Ponce Inlet.
Nelson is “optimistic” the recommendations will be approved by the full council Friday morning.
"That would get us to an updated assessment in the spring
David Nelson has been emailing the entire SAFMC, staff and NMFS directors about twice a week since the snapper ban went into place.
He forwards me all his emails and the rare replies from any of the govt officials.
We owe David a lot if all his efforts result in any opening of red snapper for us. He is both a charter and commercial guy part time. High school teacher full time.
Our SAFMC rep Tom Swatzel is one of the main proponents on the council who finally was able to get David in front of the council to present all his major points proving that the entire snapper ban is unfounded and not based on valid science at all!
David is a member of a group in Florida who has worked tirelessly for our right to fish. The group’s called the southeast fisheries association, and David’s subgroup is called the east coast fisheries section. http://seafoodsustainability.us/
David and the rest of those guys talk with Capt. Mark Brown and me on almost a daily basis, and they are the ones who have not let up for a second in this fight.
I’m telling you we owe them, and they’re mostly small commercial and charter guys. Makes you wonder sometimes who our friends really are…
Check out the number: 13,067 fish (that’s SC, NC, FL, GA combined!!!)
That’s rediculous… I hope you guys realize that they are posturing themselves for IFQ’s. They want YOU to beg THEM for snapper tags so it was your idea and not theirs… Don’t take the bait.
I agree- don’t take the bait: “how can we be allowed to catch more if only _____ are allowed?”
lottery?
tags?
mandatory reporting of catch?
tags sound like a cool idea since “we do it with other species”
BAD road to go down because there’s commercial value to the species we’re talking about, and there are people willing to pay more than us for the fish NOT to be harvested than we are willing to pay for a fish to BE harvested
We knew this was coming though, Skinneej. I am happy to see a proposal for a mini season that DOES NOT involved ITQ’s/catch shares right out of the gate. The bureaucrats have realized that Congress and the public don’t like it when the government turns a public resource into a cash cow for itself and takes away the public’s right to use a public resource.
I think we need to welcome any access to the fishery, no matter how trivial or ridiculous. I am not overjoyed, but I will be glad to see that phony estimates of release mortality and bycatch aren’t keeping red snapper absolutely closed. The only way to satisfy some of those across the fence from us is to actually PROVE to them that red snapper are not in crisis here. Some of those folks will jump ship when they “get it” then I HOPE. Right now, all those naive folks who believe whatever stats that can be spun by PEW or EDF don’t realize that $ is what’s really pushing all this and not the actual fish or environment.
I know this may be too optimistic to expect of our fishery managers, but without any access at all, there’s no way to get REAL fishery dependent data. No access and then a regional NMFS director insisting that chevron traps work fine for catching/measuring red snapper levels = data showing NO red snapper no matter how many are actually out there!
In my opinion the strongest argument we could ever have is the TRUE scientific data that’s been shown through repeated tests and cannot be refused with significant scientific probability. Right now it’s whatever the feds want and it doesn’t matter if there’s
I agree- don’t take the bait: “how can we be allowed to catch more if only _____ are allowed?”
lottery?
tags?
mandatory reporting of catch?
tags sound like a cool idea since “we do it with other species”
BAD road to go down because there’s commercial value to the species we’re talking about, and there are people willing to pay more than us for the fish NOT to be harvested than we are willing to pay for a fish to BE harvested
We knew this was coming though, Skinneej. I am happy to see a proposal for a mini season that DOES NOT involved ITQ’s/catch shares right out of the gate. The bureaucrats have realized that Congress and the public don’t like it when the government turns a public resource into a cash cow for itself and takes away the public’s right to use a public resource.
I think we need to welcome any access to the fishery, no matter how trivial or ridiculous. I am not overjoyed, but I will be glad to see that phony estimates of release mortality and bycatch aren’t keeping red snapper absolutely closed. The only way to satisfy some of those across the fence from us is to actually PROVE to them that red snapper are not in crisis here. Some of those folks will jump ship when they “get it” then I HOPE. Right now, all those naive folks who believe whatever stats that can be spun by PEW or EDF don’t realize that $ is what’s really pushing all this and not the actual fish or environment.
I know this may be too optimistic to expect of our fishery managers, but without any access at all, there’s no way to get REAL fishery dependent data. No access and then a regional NMFS director insisting that chevron traps work fine for catching/measuring red snapper levels = data showing NO red snapper no matter how many are actually out there!
In my opinion the strongest argument we could ever have is the TRUE scientific data that’s been
this is a load of BULLS-H-I-T !!! As long as Cupka and Crabtree are involved in ANY decision making, we are screwed on the recreational side…a 50% reduction in what use to be and still is a viable fishery. One fish per person WOOPEEE!! I almost lost control, I got thinking about my 5 black sea bass and one red snapper, can’t contain my excitement! There will be plenty of “high grading” going on.
Find out where ALL future candidates stand as far as our fishing rights, and vote out the D-bags that don’t support us. Let PEW and the EDF keep privatizing a public resource. Its all about the money, and catch shares. nothing else!
.
NMFS = No More Fishing Season
“Back home we got a taxidermy man. He gonna have a heart attack when he see what I brung him”
this is a load of BULLS-H-I-T !!! As long as Cupka and Crabtree are involved in ANY decision making, we are screwed on the recreational side…a 50% reduction in what use to be and still is a viable fishery. One fish per person WOOPEEE!! I almost lost control, I got thinking about my 5 black sea bass and one red snapper, can’t contain my excitement! There will be plenty of “high grading” going on.
Find out where ALL future candidates stand as far as our fishing rights, and vote out the D-bags that don’t support us. Let PEW and the EDF keep privatizing a public resource. Its all about the money, and catch shares. nothing else!
.
NMFS = No More Fishing Season
“Back home we got a taxidermy man. He gonna have a heart attack when he see what I brung him”
I wanted to give you an update concerning the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council meeting held in Orlando last week.
The council voted for a very limited reopening of the red snapper fishery through an emergency rule that should take effect in August. The recreational landings would be limited to 9,399 fish and the fishery would be limited to a few designated long weekends. Commercial landings would be limited to 3,668 fish or 20,818 lbs. through a 50 lbs. trip limit during a few designated 7 day fishery openings.
Its hoped that the reopened red snapper fishery will produce catch data that can be used in another stock assessment scheduled for 2013.
The council expressed a desire to have another stock assessment done on black sea bass in 2013. The latest projections show that the recreational black sea bass fishery could close as early as September 4th, even with the increased 13 size limit thats effective on July 1st. Click here to see the projections.
Commercial fishermen need to be aware that the annual quotas for the jack complex (almaco jack, banded rudderfish, and lesser amberjack), gray triggerfish, and greater amberjack will be met soon. The NMFS is predicting quota closures for the jack complex in July, gray triggerfish in late September, and greater amberjack in December. Click here to see the status of snapper-grouper commercial landings versus quotas.
Council Requests Emergency Rule to Allow Red Snapper Harvest this Year
Limited harvest proposed through recreational three-day weekends
and commercial mini-season
During its meeting last week in Orlando, Florida members of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council requested an emergency rule to provide recreational and commercial fishermen the opportunity to harvest a limited number of red snapper later this year, perhaps by early fall. The Council determined that a total of 13,067 fish could be harvested this year after reviewing the latest estimates of total removals of red snapper (dead discards) that have occurred during 2010 and 2011 under the current moratorium. The red snapper fishery has been closed in South Atlantic federal waters since January 4, 2010 to end overfishing and rebuild the stock as required by Congress through the Magnuson-Stevens Act.