Today, Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Robert Barham announced a closure of the fall shrimp season in most state inside waters and in a portion of state outside waters effective Monday, Dec. 22, 2014 at official sunset.
Specifically, those waters that will close to shrimping include:
- All state inside waters from the Mississippi/Louisiana state line westward to the Louisiana/Texas state line except for the following waters located east of the Mississippi River:
- Lake Pontchartrain, Chef Menteur and Rigolets Passes, Lake Borgne, Mississippi Sound, Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO), and the open waters of Breton and Chandeleur Sounds as described by the double-rig line in R.S. 56:495.1(A)2
- The portion of state outside waters extending a distance of 3 nautical miles seaward of the inside/outside shrimp line from the Atchafalaya River Ship Channel at Eugene Island as delineated by the Channel red buoy line westward to the western shore of Freshwater Bayou Canal at -92 degrees 18 minutes 33 seconds west longitude
The following state waters will remain open to shrimping until further notice:
- Lake Pontchartrain, Chef Menteur and Rigolets Passes, Lake Borgne, Mississippi Sound, Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO), and the open waters of Breton and Chandeleur Sounds as described by the double-rig line in R.S. 56:495.1(A)2
- All state outside waters east of the Atchafalaya River as well as all state outside waters west of Freshwater Bayou Canal
- All fishery jurisdiction waters claimed by the state beyond the three nautical mile closure zone
For a map detailing today’s actions click here
Existing data do not currently support shrimping closures in additional state inside or outside waters. However, historic data suggest additional closures may be needed in the near future and the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries will continue monitoring shrimp populations in these waters.
Regulations state that the possession count on saltwater, white shrimp shall average no more than 100 (whole shrimp) count per pound, with the exception of October 15 through the third Monday in December, when there is no minimum count size.
The Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission provided LDWF Secretary Robert Barham with authority to close both the fall inshore shrimp season and shrimping in the state’s territorial sea when biological and technical data indicate the need. Recent sampling conducted by the LDWF Fisheries biologists indicates that average white shrimp size in those waters to be closed is smaller than the minimum possession size limit. This action, which characteristically takes place at this time of year, is designed to protect small, white shrimp and provide opportunity for these populations to over-winter and grow to larger, more marketable sizes.
Louisiana continues to lead the country in shrimp landings. In 2013, approximately 5,300 licensed Louisiana commercial shrimpers landed 98.8 million pounds of shrimp (all species combined/heads-on weight) that had a dockside value of $178.3 million.