Not Just Grouper; We've Got Snapper Problems Too
The federal government has already instituted some strict restrictions on red snapper fishing, and today Florida legislators vote on whether or not to mirror the federal legislation for state waters, which extend about nine miles out from shore:
Under the rules, commercial fishermen would be allowed to catch up to 2.55 million pounds of snapper, while recreational anglers would be limited to 2.45 million pounds per year. In previous years, officials have allowed up to 9.1 million pounds to be caught.It kind of sucks to be a charter boat captain nowadays, doesn't it? Guess it also sucks to be a red snapper, valued for your flaky white meat.The state's charter industry is already hurting from rising gas prices and a downturn in vacation spending, the fishermen say. And cutting the snapper season, which runs from April 15 through Oct. 31, to June 1 through Sept. 30, would be devastating, they argue.
''School ends in May and families start coming and a lot of them won't go out if they cannot catch snapper,'' Graef said.
But Chris Dorsett of The Ocean Conservancy said it is crucial Florida follow the federal guidelines. That's because 76 percent of red snapper caught throughout the entire Gulf in states' waters from 2004 to 2006 came from Florida.
Short-term sacrifices from the charter boat industry will pay off with the long-term health of the species, he said.
''We believe they will pass the regulations, but they will hear from a lot of angry charter boat captains,'' Dorsett said.
Red snapper, valued for their flaky white meat and unique taste, have been overfished since the mid-1980s by recreational and commercial fishermen, who ship their catch to restaurants worldwide, Dorsett said.
Years of ineffective regulations created by compromises among the industry and regulators have depleted the species and the new restrictions are the last, best hope for recovery, Dorsett said.
Our family has a small business, so we often sympathize with small-business owners who have to give up because of government over-regulation. But this ... there's just no way around this. Everyone knows fish stocks are plummeting, and if something isn't done, there will be no fishing industry to speak of.
We were reading the comments that accompany the article, and we surprisingly found something insightful from 'Old Gator,' in response to a commenter named 'CITIZEN' who accused the government of strangling any and all businesses:
Citizen: forty years ago, after fighting tooth and nail against Canadian fishery authorities who sought to control the catch on the Grand Banks, the commercial fisheries of Labrador and Newfoundland were virtually annihalated when the populations of a half dozen species crashed almost simultaneously. You can take cruises along the coasts up there and pass by one ghost town after another, all of which used to be thriving fishery villages. They have been nothing but gull and rat infested shells for decades. Rather than accept oversight, the fishing industry of maritime Canada literally destroyed itself. If you think that our fisheries ought to commit suicide in the name of ideology, or more to the point, if they think they ought to, more power to them. Vegetarian diets are reputedly much healthier anyway - and there's no methyl mercury in soybeans.Exactly. We haven't read too much about the fishing industry in the Maritimes, but we did read Cod (highly recommended), which detailed the collapse of the Atlantic cod populations. It's scary.
We recommend checking out the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch page for a good guide on the best sustainable fish choices when buying fish or eating out. Gulf red snapper is listed as 'avoid.'
Fla. considers tough limit on snapper [Miami Herald]
Seafood Watch - Southeast Guide [Monterey Bay Aquarium]
Photo: Flickr
