August 17, 2014 — Officials are considering closing fishing areas from the Florida Keys to North Carolina and are seeking fishermen's comments.
Representatives from the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council held meetings last week in Key West and other areas of the state to obtain input on setting aside fishery areas as a way to protect critical spawning habitat.
Certain habitat areas are important for a number of species, especially snappers and groupers, as that is where they aggregate to spawn, said Gregg Waugh, management council deputy executive director. Protecting these habitats will produce more eggs and larvae and the subsequent recruitment of juvenile fish.
The goal of the proposal is to identify important spawning habitats for snapper and grouper species, while minimizing the social and economic impacts to snapper and grouper fishermen.
Read the full story at the Key West Citizen