At its upcoming meeting in New Orleans this week, the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will take final action on Reef Fish Fishery Management Plan Amendment 28, Red Snapper Allocation. Depending on the management alternative the Council selects, this amendment has the potential to modify how the red snapper quota is allocated between the commercial and recreational sectors.
NOAA Fisheries and the Council have policies to regularly revisit allocations to fishery sectors and consider conservation, economic, and social factors as well as fishery management goals when determining allocations. The Council is considering a reallocation for the red snapper harvest consistent with the 2015 red snapper assessment update to ensure the allowable catch and recovery benefits are fairly and equitably allocated between the commercial and recreational sectors.
Currently, the Council's preferred alternative bases reallocation on an increase in allowable harvest due to scientific analysis of and subsequent improvements in recreational data. Essentially, scientists found errors in historic recreational data used to set the current allocation; quota that should have been allocated to the recreational sector was erroneously allocated to the commercial sector. This alternative seeks to correct this error by allocating the amount of the increase in allowable harvest due to improved data to the recreational sector; the rest of the quota allocations will remain status quo. The percentage allocated to each sector will fluctuate annually, depending the available quota and amount of increase in quota that can be attributed to improvements in recreational data.
“Amendment 28 is meant to fulfill NOAA Fisheries and the Council’s obligation to revisit allocations according to the latest science—it is not and was never intended as a solution to the management problems in the recreational red snapper fishery," Robert Barham, Secretary, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) said. “LDWF is committed to using the best science possible to make the best decisions for our resources and the valuable commercial and recreational fisheries they support.”
LDWF is only 1 of 17 votes on the Council—we appreciate stakeholders’ participation as the Council considers Amendment 28 during its August 10-13, 2015 meeting at the Hilton Riverside, Jefferson Ballroom, in New Orleans, Louisiana. We encourage stakeholders to comment on this amendment during the public comment period on Wednesday, August 12 at 1 pm. The Council will take final action on Amendment 28 on Thursday, August 13. More information is available online at gulfcouncil.org.
“Regardless of the outcome of Amendment 28, LDWF will continue to work hard to improve recreational data collection in the recreational red snapper fishery and advocate for a more flexible, responsive management framework for this fishery, which will help extend and stabilize seasons and maximize our anglers’ opportunities to fish red snapper,” said Randy Pausina, Assistant Secretary for Fisheries, LDWF.
LDWF is charged with managing and protecting Louisiana's abundant natural resources. For more information, visit us at www.wlf.louisiana.gov, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ldwffb, or follow us on Twitter @LDWF. To receive recreational or commercial fishing email and text alerts, signup at http://www.wlf.la.gov/signup.
For press inquiries, contact Rene LeBreton at rlebreton@wlf.la.gov or (504) 286-8745.