July 18, 2017 — The Ocean Conservancy and Environmental Defense Fund filed a lawsuit on Monday suing the Department of Commerce for its decision to lengthen the federal red snapper season for recreational anglers from three days to 42. Environmentalists with the groups feel the change “sanctioned overfishing,” putting the rebuilding of the historically overfished red snapper fishery at risk, and violated the Magnuson Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA).
“We’ve made great progress but we’re only about halfway through the rebuilding plan. You don’t stop taking antibiotics halfway through a prescription,” Chris Dorsett, vice president of conservation policy and programs, said in a press release.
The lawsuit, he said, is about protecting the longevity of the red snapper fishery.
The groups are arguing the mid-season change — which was advocated for by local elected officials — violated the MSA, which requires fishery managers to create and enforce annual catch limits that prevent overfishing. If the catch limit is exceeded, the excess catch is taken out of the allocated catch for the following year.
Red snapper is halfway through a 27-year rebuilding plan. Local fishermen report that it’s working, saying they are catching more and larger red snapper, which is why many found the three-day federal season insulting.
The result, though, is fish are being caught faster and the majority are actually being caught in state-managed waters, which was why the federal season was initially so conservative. When the Department of Commerce lengthened the season, they required the states to give up fishing days as part of the compromise.