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Texas, Louisiana,
Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, United in Conservation |
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FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE October 21, 2009
Federal
managers shut down another Gulf fishery “There is no way to defend what the Council has done with the management of amberjack. It borders on outright disregard for the recreational sector,” said Chester Brewer, chairman of the Coastal Conservation Associations National Government Relations Committee. “Combined with what is happening with Gulf red snapper and the commercial catch share plan for Gulf grouper, this latest announcement gives recreational anglers no reason to have any faith in the federal management of recreational fisheries.” In 2007, the Council declared that Gulf greater amberjack were overfished, yet increased the commercial share of the fishery while reducing the recreational bag limit to one and increasing the size limit to 30 inches. The recreational restrictions were implemented despite the fact that unchecked commercial overfishing since 1990 was the primary cause of problems in the fishery - see Recreational Fishery Hijacked, CCA Press Release, September 10, 2007. “The reduction in amberjack recreational allocation in 2007 from 84 percent to 71 percent has to be the most egregious allocation shift ever enacted by the Gulf Council,” said Ted Forsgren, executive director of CCA Florida. “Anglers were punished for supporting conservation measures and the commercial industry was rewarded for fishing over its quota. The change in catch level was a direct result of NMFS’ failure to enact adequate measures to control commercial take and failure to ever enforce the adopted allocation. We are feeling the full effects of those failures today with a closed recreational season.” “If the Council had left the allocation where it was in 2007, and where it rightfully should have been, recreational anglers would not have been over their quota as of the end of August, and likely would not have gone over even by year’s end,” said Dr. Russell Nelson, CCA Gulf Fisheries consultant. “This is a case where an unwarranted allocation shift from recreational to commercial two years ago is shutting down our season, even though we are not the root cause of the problem.” Adding to the frustration of anglers is the fact that last year’s recreational harvest was under the quota, but that underage is not being taken into account this year. Under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, catch overages and underages from previous years may be calculated in the following year’s harvest limits, but doing so is not mandatory. In the case of Gulf red snapper, however, two years of recreational overages will result in a dramatically shortened season in 2010. “The one-sidedness of federal fisheries management is at a level that makes it almost impossible to believe recreational interests will ever be considered in any meaningful way,” said Brewer. “No fishery has ever been overfished by recreational angling alone, and any number of economic studies indicates that the recreational sector is by far the most valuable part of our marine fisheries. And yet, fishery after fishery is closing down for anglers while the Councils bend over backwards to keep the longlines and nets in the water. In the eyes of many recreational anglers, the federal management system is on the edge of a total breakdown.” ### CCA is the largest marine resource conservation group of its kind in the nation. With almost 100,000 members in 17 state chapters, CCA has been active in state, national and international fisheries management issues since 1977. Visit www.JoinCCA.org for more information.
ACTION ITEM We will be able to accept comments and questions on this issue until November 2, and selected comments may be posted below. Thank you.
Ted Venker Thank you for this email. My question to these folks at NOAA is...have they ever fished...do they fish? Do they have families, what activities do their families do. We went offshore 10 times this year - not one Amberjack. I have never been stopped coming in to Galveston, asking what we caught and parks and wild life recording it. Do they understand how expensive a trip offshore is for us recreational fisherman? - Shelby B. Following are a couple of examples of the emails that are being sent to the National Marine Fisheries Service, with a copy sent to CCA as well. - Newsroom Moderator Dr. Roy Crabtree, Please take the time to read my e-mail, then forward on to someone that might care. I have been hosting the Outdoors & Fishin' Television show now for 41 years. Its seen every week on Fox Sports Southwest. We do about 15 New Saltwater shows each year, the rest are fresh water shows. I have a great following of loyal viewers...I have been hammered with e-mails from viewers asking WHY???? Why is the Amberjack fishing for recreational anglers closing... So now I'm asking for somebody to come up to the plate and give a GOOD, REASONABLE EXPLANATION...not the Outrageous & Stupid ones that were all reading about... I have a Question that really needs answering, and please don't take my question wrong, because it is an honest question...WHO, is the Idiot, or Idiots that are making these very Stupid Decisions without any concerns for the Millions of Recreational Anglers out there that are purchasing licenses, buying boats, gas, motel rooms, and spending thousands of dollars in fishing equipment each year...What about all those folks...
I am sad to say that this so called
National Marine Fisheries Service is far from competent, what they
are is a disaster & Hopefully by some means will either be shut
down, or the ignorant decision makers replaced with someone with
common sense. I am always here, should anyone like to join me for
a discussion on what's going on..You can be sure that our
Television show will be filled with guest who are just as
disgusted with the National Marine Fisheries Service for the
direction that their taking, as I Am...Its really hard to believe
that this can actually happen, that there are actually folks that
think what their doing is right. Where do they find these
folks?????
Dr. Crabtree, This is absolutely ridiculous! Again! (See the red snapper debacle that we are now living with the effects of! Wake up and see where the most tax dollars, conservation efforts and dollars, funding of scientific research, coastal economic impact, and jobs come from. It is not from commercial fishing. It is from recreational anglers and the recreational fishing industry. I am appalled, Again, at the ineptitude and protectionist attitude the NMFS has for an industry that should by all means be replaced by sustainable aquaculture or at the least enforced sustainable commercial limits. CCA and the NMFS should be working together to make this whole thing work for all Americans and you constantly award the commercial fisherman who are cheating themselves and recreational anglers into oblivion. They wipe out one species at a time and leave us to clean up their mess they leave behind with your blessing. I am sick of recreational anglers suffering for the results poor decisions like this one. WAKE UP! - Ben F. Dr. Crabtree, In the 1980s Texans brought out the fact that commercial interests over fish a species (Red Drum) and contribute considerably less to the economy that recreational fishermen. Period. And we made changes (no commercial fishing for redfish) that literally saved the species. What you have done is totally unacceptable regarding the Amberjack and Red Snapper fishery. It is not good for the fishery and not good for the economy and certainly not good for the millions of Americans that recharge their batteries by making a weekend fishing trip. Please reverse this policy and make the wise decision to limit commercial harvests and leave the recreational season open. I am putting forth an effort to investigate your motivation for implementing the policy. When someone makes a decision that is blatantly against common sense, economics, and science, something is “fishy”. Pun intended and it STINKS! - Tommy M. I believe we share the same ultimate goal: to save and preserve our oceanic ecosystem. Recreational fisherman are perhaps the most vigilant and important stewards of our resources. Freshwater trout streams across the country have been cleaned, restored and managed for decades by concerned anglers that self-impose limits and conservation measures. A prime example would be the fine work of Trout Unlimited. Commercial fishing, by definition, is a job, a job that measures success by maximizing harvest. By continually bolstering commercial fishing and reducing the opportunities of recreational fisherman, you are creating a situation that will permanently damage our fishery and our future. As a father, with a two year old boy, I fear that my son will never have the opportunity to experience the joys and wonders that I have discovered in the outdoors.
As any father will tell you, the
retention of a few fish to "bring home to show mama", is
critical in the process of building interest, understanding, and
ultimately pride in our fisheries. It will be mighty hard to
explain to my son that he cannot keep any fish for dinner, but
must throw them all back - and yes that big boat over there gets
to keep literally tons of them because they fish for money. They
fish for money, and rather than find a more lucrative job in
what could have been a very dynamic economy funded by
recreational fishing dollars, they continue to overharvest, and
fish illegally because they too must "make a living." "Son, if
you would like fish for dinner, we can buy some at the store."
"It will not be as fresh as the ones we released today, and you
will not learn skills to clean and process your catch, but it
must be" - Nathan C. Many people who sent comments to Dr. Roy Crabtree about the amberjack closure received a reply and forwarded it to CCA. We refute his implication that we are spreading misinformation and so we asked CCA Gulf Fisheries Consultant Dr. Russell Nelson to lay out the simple facts. Perhaps the most relevant fact to keep in mind, which can in no way be construed as misinformation, is the fact that the commercial sector is still fishing for amberjack and we are not. Dr. Crabtree's Comments:
"There is quite a bit of
misinformation going around about this issue. Most of the
allowable greater amberjack catch is allocated to the
recreational fishery: 1.368 million pounds. The commercial
quota is 503,000 pounds. Please understand that when the Gulf
Council took action in 2008 to rebuild greater amberjack, the
reductions in harvest on the commercial sector (43% reduction)
were greater than on the recreational sector (26% reduction).
The Council's action was intended to increase the recreational
share of the catch. In addition, the Council did not reduce
the recreational bag limit - it was already 1 - they did
increase the size limit by 2 inches and eliminated the bag
limit for captain and crew on for-hire trips.
The proposed interim allocation
would be in effect through the remainder of the greater
amberjack rebuilding plan until such time that the Council,
through the recommendations of an Ad Hoc Allocation Committee,
could implement a separate amendment that fairly and equitably
allocated FMP resources between recreational and commercial
fisheries. This will allow for a more thorough
and comprehensive analysis for consistently allocating reef
fish resources and maximizing net benefits to the Nation.
Dr. Nelson responds: The simple facts about Gulf Amberjack and the recent closure - In 1990 the Gulf Council allocated 84 percent of the annual allowed catch of amberjack to the recreational sector. Over the next 15 years, a bag limit was in place for anglers, but neither the National Marine Fisheries Service nor the Gulf Council took any action to keep the commercial harvest within its 16 percent and this unrestricted catch rose to more than 35 percent of the total in some years. In 2007, The Gulf Council had to reduce harvests and establish a rebuilding plan when informed that amberjack had been overfished. Essentially all those years of unrestricted commercial harvest had driven stock size down. Despite strong protest from CCA, the Gulf Council, supported by the NMFS, changed the allocation and rewarded the commercial industry for constantly exceeding its 16 percent share by increasing their share to 29 percent of the total. The recreational share was reduced to 71 percent of the total. On October 24, the NMFS announced a sudden and unexpected closure of the recreational amberjack fishery in the Gulf. To date total landings have been about 1.413 million pounds. If the allocation had not been changed, the recreational quota this year would have been 1.572 million pounds and the closure would not have been instituted. Ironically, the commercial amberjack fishery continues to access the fishery while recreational anglers have to sit at the dock and watch them leave.
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