Saving Seafood

IMPORTANT: NC & GA/SC Revised Cobia PID Hearing Dates

September 17, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

North Carolina’s Public Hearing on Atlantic Cobia PID, which was scheduled for September 18th at 6 PM in Manteo, has been rescheduled for September 26th at 6 PM at the same location (Dare County Commissioners Office, 954 Marshall Collins Drive, Room 168, Manteo, NC). The Georgia/South Carolina Public Hearing on Atlantic Cobia PID, which was scheduled for September 12th at 6 PM, will be held on September 24th at 6 PM at the same location (National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, 175 Bourne Avenue, Pooler, GA).

Scientists discover hidden deep-sea coral reef off South Carolina Coast

August 28, 2018 — If you think Charleston, South Carolina, has plenty of history within its pre-Colonial grounds, just look at what’s been hiding 160 miles off the city’s coast for thousands of years: a giant deep-sea coral reef system. The chief scientist who helped make the discovery called it unbelievable.

Little is known about the natural resources of the deep ocean off the United States’ Southeast coast from Virginia to Georgia, so Deep Search 2018 was created to learn more by exploring the deep sea ecosystems. The project, consisting of scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and the US Geological Survey, is nearing the end of its 15-day voyage aboard the research vessel Atlantis.

Read the full story at CNN

NOAA to (briefly) reopen recreational red snapper fishing next month

July 27, 2018 –Recreational and commercial fishers will be able to catch red snapper off the South Carolina coast in limited amounts next month.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will allow South Atlantic anglers to keep their catch during the second and third weekends of August. The agency’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) published the new regulation in the Federal Register on Thursday. Commercial fishing will be allowed starting Thursday.

Harvesting red snapper from the South Atlantic was prohibited in 2010 as NOAA worked to restore a population it said was depleted by overfishing. The agency allowed limited catches from 2012-2014, but halted the harvest as the resulting catch exceeded what it considered “acceptable.”

“It’s obvious from looking out in the field, that the stock is rebuilding,” South Carolina Office of Fisheries Management director Mel Bell said. “The stock’s rebuilding, but it’s just taking time.”

Read the full story at the South Carolina Radio Network

Looking for local red snapper? South Carolina limited fishing season will open soon

July 24, 2018 — A limited season for red snapper will open July 26 for recreational and commercial fishing in the South Atlantic Region, which includes South Carolina, North Carolina, Florida and Georgia.

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council announced Monday in a release that scientific research showed an increase in the red snapper population since 2010. It states NOAA Fisheries determined limited harvest beginning in 2018 is not expected to result in overfishing, nor prevent a continued rebuilding of the population.

Recreational fishing will open for harvest on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. It will run from July 26 to August 20.

Read the full story at The Island Packet

Feds could pull back on South Carolina offshore fishing rules

July 23, 2018 — Offshore fish stocks could soon be governed by better science or ravaged by loopholes in new rules, depending on which side you ask.

A contested bill to reorganize offshore fishing regulation is now in the U.S. Senate after passing the House of Representatives in a split vote. It pushes alternatives to the daily catch and season limits to restore game species.

Off South Carolina’s coast, it could dramatically change how much stock is caught of popular game and commercial fish such as snapper and grouper.

For example, under the proposed rules, any fishing restriction to rebuild the stock would be based partly on how quickly the fish reproduce, not on the standard 10-year timetable, and would have to take consumer concerns into account.

Fishing for nearly every sought-after offshore species is under a series of timetable restrictions because research indicates overfishing. Anglers have long argued their catches suggest more fish of nearly every regulated species are out there than current surveying suggests.

Federal regulators have conceded that and are working to improve the counts.

The proposed rules, a rework of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, would give anglers and regulators more line.

Read the full story at The Post and Courier

Reminder: Review Continues for Red Snapper Opening in the South Atlantic for 2018

July 10, 2018 — The following was released by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

Fishermen are reminded that harvest and/or possession of red snapper is prohibited in federal waters off the coasts of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and the east coast of Florida. The fishery remains closed as NOAA Fisheries and the Secretary of Commerce continue final review of Amendment 43 to the Snapper Grouper Fishery Management Plan for the South Atlantic Region. A Fishery Bulletin regarding approval is expected from NOAA Fisheries and the Secretary within the next two weeks. Given the timeline for the review process, it is likely that, IF the amendment is approved, a red snapper season would begin in August 2018.

The amendment specifies a total annual catch limit (ACL) for red snapper of 42,510 fish, with 29,656 fish allocated to the recreational sector. The bag limit for red snapper would be 1 fish per person/day with no minimum size limit. The recreational season would be weekends only (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). The number of weekend openings for the recreational fishery would be determined by NOAA Fisheries and announced in advance. The commercial fishery would open with a 75-pound trip limit (gutted weight) with no minimum size limit, and close when the commercial ACL is met or projected to be met. The Council approved Amendment 43 for Secretarial review in September 2017. A benchmark stock assessment for red snapper will be conducted in 2020.

Sign up for E-News from the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s website at www.safmc.net and receive Fishery Bulletins from NOAA Fisheries’ Southeast Regional Office at http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/index.html.

Lionfish trapping may one day help South Carolina against ocean predator

July 6, 2018 — A garden full of poisonous, stinging lionfish — that’s what one diver said he found on the bottom offshore South Carolina.

The predators are taking over by the thousands, killing off snappers, groupers and other valued fish catches.

Traps to cut their numbers were first proposed three years ago. Now, literally billions of laid lionfish eggs later, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is about to give the go-ahead on a permit to set out 100 cages to study whether the traps can put a dent in their numbers.

None of the traps will be off South Carolina, where the original proposal called for some. But the study is at least a first step to maybe slowing down a fish that veteran Florida Keys trap fisherman Bill Kelly calls “the most aggressive invasive species that we’ll see in my lifetime.”

The lionfish is a seductively beautiful scorpion fish. It’s so colorfully camouflaged that it blends almost invisibly into the coral, like a rattlesnake blends into brush.

Read the full story at the Post and Courier

Spiny Lobster Catch Levels Increased, Rec Traps Prohibited in South Atlantic

June 27, 2018 — NOAA Fisheries announces a final rule for Regulatory Amendment 4 to the Fishery Management Plan for Spiny Lobster in the Gulf of Mexico and the South Atlantic (Regulatory Amendment 4). Regulatory Amendment 4 increases the catch limit for spiny lobster based on updated landings information and revised scientific recommendations; and prohibits the use of traps for recreational harvest of spiny lobster in federal waters off North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia.

WHEN RULE WILL TAKE EFFECT:

Regulations will be effective at 12:01 a.m., local time, on July 23, 2018.

WHAT THIS MEANS:

  • The final rule increases the catch limit for spiny lobster from 7.3 million pounds to 9.6 million pounds.
  • Currently, recreational harvest of spiny lobster using traps is prohibited in federal waters off Florida, but is allowed in federal waters off North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. The final rule makes the prohibition consistent throughout the federal waters off all four states in the South Atlantic region.

FORMAL FEDERAL REGISTER NAME/NUMBER: 83 FR 29044, published June 22, 2018

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs)

Why increase the catch limits for spiny lobster?

  • Current catch limits for spiny lobster are based on landings from fishing years 2000/2001 through 2009/2010.  This time period included years where landings were historically low.
  • The Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic Fishery Management Councils’ Scientific and Statistical Committees recommended specifying catch limits for spiny lobster using a longer time series of spiny lobster landings (fishing years 1991/1992 through 2015/2016).
  • The longer time period is better suited to capture the dynamics of the fishery that are influenced by factors beyond spiny lobster biology and harvest, such as environmental conditions.
  • The increase in catch limits is based on the best scientific information available.

Why prohibit recreational harvest of spiny lobster using traps in federal waters off North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia?

  • Use of traps to catch spiny lobster by recreational fishermen off Florida is prohibited.
  • The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council is concerned that recreational use of trap gear may become more popular and result in potential negative impacts on essential fish habitat and result in an increase in the use of vertical lines that may interact with protected species (entanglement issues).
  • Trap gear also has the potential to “ghost” fish (trap continues to fish after it is lost).
  • To date, the public has expressed little interest in using traps for the recreational harvest of spiny lobster off North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia.  This may be due to a daily bag or possession limit for spiny lobster from federal waters other than Florida, of two per person for commercial and recreational fishing, year-round.
  • Because spiny lobsters are larger in size in federal waters off Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina than off Florida, current trap configuration may not be efficient in capturing spiny lobster.  Recreational traps used off Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina may require larger entrances which could result in greater bycatch of fish, crabs, and other invertebrates.
  • The final rule will make the trap prohibition for recreational fishermen consistent throughout the federal waters off all four states in the South Atlantic region.
  • Consistent regulations regarding this prohibition will aid law enforcement and avoid confusion among the fishers.

Read the full story at The Fishing Wire

GEORGIA: State, local leaders request fishery disaster declaration

June 20, 2018 — Shrimping season is officially underway in Georgia and South Carolina.

As boaters are casting their nets, local and state leaders are calling on federal help to provide relief on the money lost due to winter weather. Chatham County Commission Chairman Al Scott and Congressman Buddy Carter have both sent letters to the U.S. Department of Commerce requesting a fishery declaration be declared for Coastal Georgia.

Winter was tough in the Coastal Empire and Lowcountry this year, affecting water temperature. Before Tuesday, state waters have been closed since Jan. 15 to harvesting of brown, pink and white shrimp. Federal waters closed to shrimping back on Jan. 24. Since the water closures, shrimpers have not been able to make money by harvesting those specified shrimp.

According to Carter’s letter, the seafood industry in Georgia has an economic impact of more than $1 billion.

“The financial hardship that they have suffered as a result of the waters being closed has been substantial, and they need this financial relief, and that’s why I sent to letter to the Secretary of Commerce,” he said.

We spoke to one fisherman Tuesday who says this is a necessary lifeline.

“We’ve got two months of our fishery that’s gone and we have a very short period of time that we’re able to shrimp,” said George Gale, shrimp harvester.

Read the full story at WTOC

Fishing for White, Brown, and Pink Shrimp is Open Off South Carolina in Federal Waters

June 14, 2018 — The following was released by NOAA:

WHAT/WHEN:

  • Federal waters adjacent to South Carolina state waters are open to fishing for white, brown, and pink shrimp as of 4:15 p.m., local time, June 13, 2018.
  • South Carolina state waters remain closed until the state determines an appropriate reopening date.  
WHY THIS REOPENING IS HAPPENING:
  • South Carolina closed its state waters to all shrimping on January 10, 2018, due to a prolonged period of water temperatures at or below 9°C in the region.
  • South Carolina requested NOAA Fisheries close federal waters off South Carolina to shrimping. The federal closure was effective January 17, 2018.
  • The purpose of the closure was to protect the white shrimp spawning population.
  • Observations of mature white shrimp, as well as evidence of recent and current spawning, provided by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, suggest the federal waters should be reopened off South Carolina to allow for harvest.
  • South Carolina officials will continue to monitor the white shrimp population to determine when it is appropriate to allow shrimp fishing to resume in state waters.
This bulletin provides only a summary of the existing regulations. Full regulations can be found in the Federal Register.