Red Snapper in the Gulf Recovering

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Fishermen are reeling in bigger and more mature red snapper — a sign that the overfished species is beginning to recover and tight regulations can be relaxed a bit, according to a new analysis.



Based on results of this year’s annual survey of red snapper, released Wednesday in New Orleans, a panel of scientists recommended allowing fishermen to catch more of the fish starting next year. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, which sets fishing limits, will vote on the recommendation in February.



Roy Crabtree, the regional administrator for the National Marine Fisheries Service, said the assessment showed that overfishing has ended, but not that “red snapper has been rebuilt or recovered.”



He said fishermen could expect quotas and catch limits on red snapper to be increased.



The “findings show indications that some recovery has occurred in the red snapper population,” said Chris Dorsett, a conservation expert with the Ocean Conservancy, a national marine advocacy group.



He added: “This is great news for the Gulf environment and the economy.”



Glen Brooks, the Cortez, Fla.-based president of the Gulf Fishermen’s Association, said it was common knowledge among fishermen that red snapper were making a comeback.



“We believe the population is real healthy. The fishermen see things a couple of years before the scientists see it with their model assessments,” Brooks said. “On the west coast of Florida, if you caught two, three snapper a trip, it was pretty good. Now, you can load a boat up with the suckers. They have definitely come back pretty strong.”



Not everyone agrees.



James Cowan, a fisheries oceanographer at Louisiana State University, warned that the recent data likely reflected a temporary rebound. He said the scientific panel based its recommendations on “the least conservative” model runs. Cowan sits on the advisory panel and voted against increasing catch limits.



“We’re still killing the young too quickly. We need the fish to live long enough to produce a bunch of eggs,” Cowan said. “These guys don’t reach maximum egg potential until they’re 15 years old.”



“This has happened before,” he said. “Everybody gets amped up, we increase catches and we realize after that we can’t support that fishing rate.”



Red snapper can live for more than 50 years, but for the past 20 years the Gulf has been populated by smaller and younger fish, most of them under five years, Dorsett said. He said “rebuilding that age class structure was critically important” to maintaining the species.



Red snapper is regulated under a plan that restricts how many million pounds of the fish can be caught each year by commercial and recreational fishermen. There also are rules to stop fishermen from discarding red snapper they don’t use and from catching them in shrimp nets.

[bullets13]

http://www.beaumontenterprise.com/news/local/Red_Snapper_in_Gulf_recovering.html

[Bucof2010]

I don't ever fish for red snapper or offshore but to me if the regs are working give it a few more years just to be certain. Trying to reinstate would be much harder than using what they've already got.

[643]

Roy Crabtree is a lieing SOB and its been proven on more than 1 occassion, once in front of a town hall meeting hosted by Nick Lampson in League City and his statements are a matter of record . I really don't know IF you've been following this JUNK but I have, the Ocean Conservancy along with the PEW Foundation are pushing for catch shares on the gulf and sitting in wait with millions of $$$ to buy the shares>>>do you honestly think 1 will get used, its just another way to get us (the Recs) OFF the water. Do you also know when they do their 'JUNK SCIENCE' counts on the Red Snapper they DO NOT count any fish on ANY oil rig in the Gulf, I could go on n on. If you want a shocker Google MPAs and see where the antis are going with this crappola. Don't look for any change till they are forced do a MAJOR overhaul on the 'Magnusan-Stevenson"

[643]

Told Ya'll their just getting started!


NOAA 'CHAMPIONS' ANOTHER CLOSURE
No Red Snapper Fishing Until Further Notice


December 4, 2009 - On Thursday afternoon, President Obama wrapped up a jobs forum in Michigan by challenging the nation's top CEOs, business leaders and economists to come up with innovative ideas to put Americans back to work. At the same time, NOAA Fisheries issued pink slips to thousands of South Atlantic and Gulf fishermen who rely on access to a healthy red snapper fishery.

On December 3, NOAA announced a 6-month ban on both the recreational and commercial harvest of red snapper in South Atlantic federal waters off Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina beginning on January 4. The provisions specified in the interim prohibition rule also apply to a person on-board a vessel for which a federal commercial or charter/headboat permit for the South Atlantic snapper-grouper fishery has been issued, regardless of whether the fish are harvested or possessed in state or federal waters.

U.S. Congressman John L. Mica (FL-07) called the Administration's decision to impose the ban on red snapper fishing throughout the Southeast U.S. coast an economic disaster for the region. "During this time of economic downturn this ban will be a significant job killer and an economic blow to nearly every coastal community from North Carolina to South Florida," stated Mica.

Dave Heil, a Florida-based attorney for the Recreational Fishing Alliance RFA) has filed a lawsuit in federal court in Jacksonville and will seek an emergency injunction to prevent the ban from taking effect and asking a judge to throw out the rule that created the ban. "We have today filed a lawsuit in Federal Court in Jacksonville, FL and we feel confident that once a federal judge reviews the arbitrary and capricious methods used by the National Marine Fisheries Service, the closure will be overturned," Heil said.

Heil and the RFA charge that the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC) and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) are using improper data to drive their decision, and explain the government has already acknowledged that the data collection methodology used to make the closure determination was never intended to be used for such purposes. The red snapper complaint filed on behalf of the RFA charges NMFS with ignoring mandates from the federal fisheries law (Magnuson Stevens Act) to address inconsistencies within the data collectionprocess. "It is apparent that the SAFMC and the NMFS have ignored the Magnuson Stevens in passing the Interim Rule using the obviously flawed data from MRFSS," Heil added.

"This ban will put thousands of marginal sport fishing tourist enterprises out of business," Rep. Mica said, adding "The timing couldn't be worse for Florida with its tourism and fishing seasons set to begin at the start of the New Year and with the economy at its worst in years.".

At a NOAA sponsored tackle trade show summit in October held in San Diego, CA, Under-Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator, Jane Lubchenco told tackle industry leaders that NOAA was actively responding to the concerns expressed by recreational fishing leaders "that we don't pay enough attention to recreational fishing," summarizing her
address by saying "We will be your champions." In her first 9 months as NOAA Administrator, the former Pew Fellowship Award winner has championed the complete recreational closure of black sea bass, amberjack and red snapper.

"If this is what Ms. Lubchenco means by being our champion, I'd hate to think about what NOAA will do when they decide to really go after us," said Jim Donofrio, Executive Director of the RFA. Donofrio said the RFA has already submitted a legal challenge in the Mid-Atlantic in response to the
NOAA's decision to close the sea bass fishery, and he's hoping that the RFA FL membership base can help rally around Heil's legal challenge on behalf of red snapper.

"NOAA continues to put nails into the coffin of the beleaguered recreational marine industry, while the preservationists over at Pew Environment Group are already dancing on our graves," Donofrio said. Soon after NOAA's announcement about the red snapper closure, Holly Binns, manager of the
Pew Environment Group's Campaign to End Overfishing in the Southeast said "Today's decision symbolizes an important first step towards saving the severely overfished red snapper." Many southeast fishermen dispute Pew's claims that the snapper are overfished and say the science being used is flawed and misleading.

In July, Rep. Mica introduced legislation that requested additional data collection before any ban was imposed, although the legislation had bipartisan support, environmental groups like Pew Environment Group and Pew-funded allies within the Marine Fish Conservation Network blocked consideration of the bill which was denied a hearing. "They're imposing a ban with flawed data and they've refused to sit down with the industry and come up with a better management solution,"Mica said.

In addition to the latest legal challenge submitted in Jacksonville, RFA continues to seek support from Florida Senator Bill Nelson for the Flexibility in Rebuilding American Fisheries Act of 2009 (S-1255). "Recent amendments to the Magnuson Stevens Act have led to these arbitrary and unprecedented restrictions on many of our most important recreational fisheries in the Gulf and South Atlantic," Donofrio said. "We believe that Magnuson can be amended to allow a balance of conservation and access at the same time."

More than 150 groups, organizations and businesses have signed on with the RFA to support S-1255, including Cooperative of Gulf Fishermen, Destin Charter Boat Association, Fishing Rights Alliance, Indian River Charter Boat Association, Marco Island Charter Captains Association, Panama City Boatmen Association, Pensacola Charterboat Association and South Atlantic Charterboat Association. National supporting groups include Marine Retailers Association of America, National Association of Charterboat Operators and National Marine Manufacturers Association.

See the full list of supporters at http://www.joinrfa.org/Press/Flexibi...ers_061809.pdf.

For background information on MRFSS, visit www.joinrfa.org/Press/RFA_MRFSS.pdf.

[bh89-2]

[quote name="643" post="725612" timestamp="1260197108"]
Roy Crabtree is a lieing SOB and its been proven on more than 1 occassion, once in front of a town hall meeting hosted by Nick Lampson in League City and his statements are a matter of record . I really don't know IF you've been following this JUNK but I have, the Ocean Conservancy along with the PEW Foundation are pushing for catch shares on the gulf and sitting in wait with millions of $$$ to buy the shares>>>do you honestly think 1 will get used, its just another way to get us (the Recs) OFF the water. Do you also know when they do their 'JUNK SCIENCE' counts on the Red Snapper they DO NOT count any fish on ANY oil rig in the Gulf, I could go on n on. If you want a shocker Google MPAs and see where the antis are going with this crappola. Don't look for any change till they are forced do a MAJOR overhaul on the 'Magnusan-Stevenson"
[/quote]

AMEN BROTHER!!!!!!!  They are almost as bad, if not worse than the TCEQ.