Fish Ban Could Devastate Sport Angling in Southeast 6/17/10
In an effort to protect the population of red snapper, anglers in the southeastern United States are facing a potential ban on all bottom fishing off the coast of Florida and Georgia. The ban will have a large economic impact on the region and is moving forward despite soon to be completed data that could reduce the need for such a policy.
On June 9, the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC) in a split 9-4 vote, a ban for red snapper that has been in effect since January 4, 2010 in coastal waters from North Carolina to Florida. To avoid incidentally catching red snapper, the SAFMC voted for an additional ban to stop all bottom fishing off the coast of Georgia and northern Florida in water ranging from 98 to 240 feet. According to the latest information, the ban will impact 5,000 square miles of prime fishing area.
The goal of both bans is to restore the red snapper population, which according to scientific data made available by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), has been overfished. Anglers oppose the bans due to concerns that the supporting data is not up to date and that such a widespread ban could result in a large, negative economic impact for the region.
by the American Sportfishing Association (ASA) indicates that the southeastern United States’ sport angling market stands to take a severe hit under a prolonged ban. The study indicates that around 1,300 bait and tackle stores will be affected by the ban and causing an estimated $78 million in lost sales during just the first year.
In addition to the fears over the harmful economic impact of the ban, new data concerning the red snapper population in the affected region will become available as soon as December. If the stock numbers show improvement, the ban could be modified. According to staff at the SAFMC, any necessary changes to the ban in light of the new data could be expedited and not trigger a new round of public comments and meetings that could take months.
Leaders within the sport angling community have called for a slow down on the ban until the new red snapper numbers can be analyzed.
“Sportsmen and sport anglers obviously support healthy, sustainable wildlife, but for such a harsh policy to be implemented without the latest information seems premature,” said Bud Pidgeon, USSA president and CEO.
"…Why not wait for the results of that study before taking such extreme and potentially economically devastating action," said Mike Nussman, ASA president and CEO.
“The USSA agrees with the ASA that the new red snapper stock assessment should be taken into consideration and encourages NOAA and the Secretary of Commerce to do everything possible to mitigate the damage sport anglers will suffer,” concluded Pidgeon.
The proposed ban now moves to the NOAA and a public comment period will be available before it goes to the Secretary of Commerce for final authorization. The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA) will inform sportsmen when the comment period begins.
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