Sportfishing Industry Presents Findings on South Atlantic Snapper/Grouper Management Improvements
Alexandria, VA – – At last week’s South Atlantic Fishery Management Council(Council) Meeting in Jekyll Island, Ga., the American Sportfishing Association(ASA) reported the results of a series of workshops focused on ways to achieve better recreational fisheries management of snapper grouper species in the South Atlantic. The presentation was the culmination of a project sponsored by ASA,Yamaha Marine Group and the Coastal Conservation Association, in cooperation with the Council.
"While the sportfishing industry has appreciated the seasons – limited as they have been – for South Atlantic red snapper in recent years, much work remains to be done to improve management and access of this and other snapper-grouper species," said Kellie Ralston, the American Sportfishing Association’s Southeast Fisheries Policy Director. "Through this project, we were able to flesh out a variety of promising management and data collection ideas that have the potential to provide more reasonable and predictable fishing regulations."
An initial workshop to identify the concepts and approaches to take out to regional meetings for local input was held with the Council at their September 2018 meeting in Charleston, South Carolina. Subsequently, five regional meetings were held from November 2018 through January 2019 in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia, with two meetings in Florida. Workshop participants provided input on their local areas and concerns and discussed a variety of topics, including regional differences, electronic reporting, barotrauma reduction, and pilot projects as pathways for the Council to pursue.
The results and recommendations from the recreational workshops will go to the Council’s Snapper/Grouper Advisory Panel for review and discussion in late April. Afterwards, the Council will discuss how to move forward on the suggestions brought forward in the report.
"We appreciate the cooperative approach of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council in working with us on these workshops and for providing us an opportunity to present the project’s outcomes and recommendations for new approaches for recreational snapper grouper management," said Ralston. "We look forward to working with the Council to further explore these options."
"Yamaha appreciates the hard work of the American Sportfishing Association, the Coastal Conservation Association and the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council. Their efforts have increased understanding of methods to better manage recreational fishing. We hope this is the beginning of positive, productive dialogue on the Council and among all stakeholders," said Martin Peters, Senior Manager, Yamaha Marine Government Relations.
Additional information from the SAFMC meeting, including an interactive Story Map, and the regional meetings report, is located here.
About Keep Florida Fishing®
Keep Florida Fishing® is an advocacy arm of the American Sportfishing Association with the goal of ensuring Florida anglers have clean waters, abundant fisheries and access to both. Florida is considered the ‘Fishing Capital of the World’ and home to more than three million licensed anglers, supporting 128,000 jobs, providing $9.6 billion in economic activity and contributing more than $53.3 million for fisheries conservation. Find Keep Florida Fishing on Facebook, Twitter,Instagram and Pinterest.
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The American Sportfishing Association (ASA) is the sportfishing industry's trade association committed to representing the interests of the sportfishing and boating industries as well as the entire sportfishing community. We give the industry and anglers a unified voice when emerging laws and policies could significantly affect sportfishing business or sportfishing itself. ASA invests in long-term ventures to ensure the industry will remain strong and prosperous, as well as safeguard and promote the enduring economic, conservation and social values of sportfishing in America. ASA also gives America's 49 million anglers a voice in policy decisions that affect their ability to sustainably fish on our nation's waterways through Keep America Fishing, our national angler advocacy campaign. America's anglers generate nearly $50 billion in retail sales with a $125 billion impact on the nation's economy creating employment for 800,000 people.