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Anglers take closer look at limited permits |
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As offshore anglers snarl at tightening catch restrictions and large
area bottom closures, federal agencies are moving to regulate prized
species like snapper and grouper in part by limiting the number of
people who can go after them.
The system, called catch shares, restricts the number of permits issued and fish caught to make sure enough of the species survives to repopulate. The idea hasn't been popular here: Try divvying up a limited number of permits among more than 100,000 recreational, charter and commercial anglers in South Carolina alone. Anglers of all stripes have bristled at the suggestion of it for years. But times have changed. Faced with the threat of losing vast areas of prime fishing offshore, anglers have now petitioned the federal South Atlantic Fishery Management Council to take another look. What's at stake is a saltwater industry that's estimated to be worth $600 million per year in the state and the ability to put fresh, local sea fish on the plate in the Lowcountry. Read the complete story at The Sun News.
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EDITORIAL: Three months in, new fishing rules bring disarray
The catch share system was rolled out prematurely without the level of analysis, planning, budgeting, and community dialogue that would be expected to be associated with a major federal action.
