Latest news with #Amendment59
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
NOAA eases off enhanced restrictions on red snapper fishing off Southeast coast
WASHINGTON – NOAA Fisheries said it has amended rules that will expand fishing of red snapper in the South Atlantic, which will impact both recreational and commercial fishing. The changes are part of what is known as Amendment 59 and were made possible because of a greater suspected population. According to the agency, the annual recreational fishing season will now take place on July 11 and 12, while commercial harvesting will be possible from July 14 through Jan. 1, 2026, or until limits are reached. The amended rules set the total annual catch limit at 509,000 fish, in order to prevent the risk of overfishing off the coast of the Southeast. According to a recent assessment, the Gulf of America stock is not overfished but is still rebuilding to target levels, with the South Atlantic recently reported to be overfished but not yet rebuilt to target levels. Biologists Rescue Endangered Sawfish In Florida Keys As Race To Save Species Underway Population estimates for red snapper in both the Atlantic and the Gulf have been the subject of ongoing controversy, with members of the fishing industry and some research institutions arguing that actual numbers far exceed federal assessments. The Harte Research Institute at Texas A&M University estimates there are over 118 million red snappers in the Gulf, more than three times the federal government's estimate of 36 million. Similar skepticism exists regarding red snapper populations in the Atlantic, although few if any official theories have been released to quantify just how far off the official counts might be. U.S. Representative John Rutherford, of Florida, who previously introduced the Red Snapper Act, has fought to prevent NOAA from imposing further fishing restrictions until a comprehensive review can determine the species' actual population in the Atlantic. "The release of Amendment 59 by NOAA, without the proposed three-month bottom fishing closure, is a major victory for Florida, especially for our more than 4 million anglers, coastal communities, and families whose livelihoods depend on reliable access to these waters and fisheries," Rutherford said in a statement. The governors of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina have supported measures to limit restrictions on fishing and have even requested to take control of management of the red snapper population. "As we work with the administration to cut red tape and empower states to do what is best for our people, Governor Ron DeSantis, Governor Henry McMaster, and I are requesting state management of red snapper and other reef fishes in the Atlantic," Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said in a recent statement. "Our fishing industry has suffered under heavy handed federal regulations imposed by bureaucrats thousands of miles away. It's time this industry is managed much closer to home." Us Coast Guard Unveils First Polar Icebreaker In More Than 25 Years According to the Florida Museum of Natural History, 8 million pounds of snapper are caught every year along the U.S. coastline. Most commercial fishing is done with electric or hydraulic reels that can catch dozens of fish at one time. Unlike in the Atlantic, the Gulf's population is managed by a consortium of agencies, including NOAA Fisheries, the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council and state agencies that surround the body of water. The State of Florida previously announced a 126-day recreational fishing season in the Gulf in 2025 – the longest season since the state assumed management of Gulf red snapper. According to NOAA, red snappers feed on other fish, shrimp, crab, worms and plankton. The species can live to be about 50 years old and weigh upwards of around 50 article source: NOAA eases off enhanced restrictions on red snapper fishing off Southeast coast
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Florida fishermen celebrate red snapper rule change, but leaders say the fight isn't over
Big changes are shaking up red snapper fishing in the South Atlantic, and Florida Congressman John Rutherford says it's a hard-fought win for the families who depend on the water for their way of life. NOAA Fisheries just released Amendment 59, scaling back a controversial proposal that would have temporarily banned bottom fishing across much of the Atlantic. Instead, the updated rule now limits recreational red snapper harvest to just under 23,000 fish and allows commercial boats a little more than 102,000 pounds. Captain Steve Mullen, a longtime Mayport charter fisherman, welcomed the decision. 'That was really a knee-jerk reaction that didn't need to happen,' Mullen said. 'Local fishermen are the best stewards of the fishery because we want the fish to survive.' Recreational anglers will get just two days to harvest red snapper this year — July 11 and 12 — with a one-fish-per-person limit. Commercial vessels can begin harvesting July 14 until the quota is met. Rutherford says Amendment 59 is a major step forward because it scraps the originally proposed three-month closure, which had drawn sharp criticism from politicians and the fishing community alike. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< Previous coverage: New bill from local congressman would protect red snapper season The governors of Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina sent a joint letter to the U.S. Department of Commerce urging NOAA to reconsider the original plan, accusing the agency of using outdated science and ignoring economic impacts. 'Seven, eight years ago when I came to Congress, people told me there were so many red snapper they could walk across their backs,' Rutherford said. 'We've known NOAA's data was off — and now they've finally admitted it.' The governors want more control at the state level, and Rutherford agrees, saying Florida has already shown it can successfully manage Gulf Coast snapper seasons. 'We've got to make sure Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina have the funding and authority to manage their own resources,' Rutherford said. He credits public pressure for forcing NOAA to back off its stricter plan — calling it a 'major victory' for Florida's 4 million anglers and the coastal families who rely on the fishery to survive. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
E&E News
09-06-2025
- General
- E&E News
NOAA reverses course on winter Florida groundfish ban
In a victory for sport fishermen, NOAA has scrapped a proposed rule that would have banned fishing for 55 fish species off Florida's Atlantic coast during the winter to aid the recovery of overfished red snapper, one of the region's most prized sport species. In a bulletin announcing a suite of changes to federal management of South Atlantic red snapper, NOAA said it had axed the three-month ban — called a 'discard reduction season' — on dozens of species that share the same near-bottom habitat with snapper, citing heavy opposition from fishing interests. Those species include black sea bass, red grouper, vermillion snapper, gag, scamp, greater amberjack and gray triggerfish. Advertisement The NOAA rule was embedded in a broader suite of management plan changes called Amendment 59 to the snapper-grouper fishery in the South Atlantic. The agency maintains that while red snapper are recovering in the ocean between Cape Canaveral, Florida, and the Florida-Georgia border, too many of the fish are discarded by fishermen, resulting in injury and death.
Miami Herald
16-05-2025
- Miami Herald
Tarpon Lodge attracts gamefish that serious anglers have on their bucket list
Here at the northern end of Pine Island, it feels like you're a world away from the vibrant streets and nightlife of nearby Fort Myers. Especially if you're staying at the charming Tarpon Lodge, a legitimate Old Florida establishment that celebrates its 100th anniversary next year. The lodge got its name from the bucket list gamefish that attracts anglers from around the world seeking to hook up with the silver king, the nickname given to the regal tarpon. This time of year, the fish migrate through Pine Island Sound, which offers a panoramic view from the lodge's dining room, which attracts locals and visitors who come for the fresh red snapper and tripletail, and several of its 22 units. Those who bring boats to the lodge's docks can visit neighboring Cabbage Key and eat at its Island Inn Restaurant, as well as South Seas Resort on Captiva Island, which has condos for rent, swimming pools, a nine-hole par-3 golf course, and several restaurants specializing in fresh seafood as it rebuilds in the wake of recent hurricane damage. Along with tarpon, visitors can tangle inshore with snook, sea trout and redfish, or head out to the passes among the islands of Captiva, North Captiva and Boca Grande. There you will find tarpon rolling on the surface as they gulp air, as well as schools of permit, which are next on the bucket list. Permit look like silver platters and fight hard as they turn their wide bodies against the current. Head a little farther west into the Gulf of Mexico and you can fish wrecks and rock piles for grouper, mangrove snapper, cobia, jacks and sharks, while sea turtles come to the surface on their way to area beaches to lay their eggs. I fished the area with members of the Association of Great Lakes Outdoor Writers, better known as AGLOW. The organization has members from 40 states, and several were eager to check off species from their personal fish lists. Rob Shane, who lives in Washington, D.C., where he works for the American Sportfishing Association, a trade organization that is a leader in promoting recreational fishing as well as fisheries conservation, was after snook. While we headed across the sound to some mangrove islands that captain Bill Hammond of Endless Summer Charters had grown up fishing, Shane talked about issues that affect Florida anglers. Among them are shark interactions, i.e. sharks that eat fish before they can be reeled in. Solutions include studying the use of magnetic technology to deter sharks from going after hooked and released fish and allowing the killing of shark species that are thriving. Another concern is NOAA's Amendment 59, which would ban bottom fishing for 55 species from Melbourne to the Georgia border for three months to protect red snapper, whose stocks are soaring. The amendment is based on unreliable data that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration itself estimated to be off by 30 to 40 percent. After arriving at a tiny island that had been hammered by Hurricane Milton, Hammond instructed us to cast live pilchards on lightweight St. Croix spinning outfits to the island. Shane was soon hooked up to a whopper of a sea trout, a 26-incher. At the next spot, Shane added a keeper redfish that Hammond released. At the next spot, a mangrove shoreline, Hammond pointed out that the water was far back in the trees and that's where the fish were. As the tide fell, the fish moved out and Shane was soon catching and releasing one snook after another by casting his bait to the edge of the mangroves, giving him an inshore grand slam. The next day, Hammond and I went offshore with captain CJ LaFauci, who runs one of Hammond's three boats, and Cristian Simpkins of Wisconsin. After trying for tarpon, which rolled all around us but ignored our live crabs, we headed about 10 miles to a rockpile in the Gulf. LaFauci put out a chum bag and used scissors to cut chunks of frozen herring that he added to the chum slick. First we free-lined live pilchards back to the fish in the slick, which produced mangrove snappers, jacks and blue runners. We switched to a bottom rig, with a hook above a weight that kept the rig on the bottom. The results were immediate, as we caught mangrove snappers, Simpkins landing a huge 21-incher, and a snook. The best fish was yet to come. On the way back to Tarpon Lodge, LaFauci stopped by the permit grounds, where he could see schools of the fish just below the surface. Using a live crab, Simpkins soon hooked one of his bucket-list fish. The permit made several long runs, ripping line off the reel spool, but Simpkins fought it expertly. After he got the fish close enough to the boat for LaFauci to net it, an out-of-breath Simpkins was all smiles as he held the fish of his lifetime.
