Officials considering closing fishing areas from Florida Keys to North Carolina – 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.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 more here 10:54

2 Responses to Officials considering closing fishing areas from Florida Keys to North Carolina – seeking fishermen’s comments.

  1. Ec Newell Man says:

    It never ends…take……take some more…. keep pushing to take it all over so that there is no fishing in any productive area off either coast of the United States.

    If various fish stocks are coming back in the Keys and South Atlantic region at this time, why then would you want to continue to close areas off to fishing activities?

    These enviro-wing nuts don’t get it, but we fishermen do. Before I would say, “lets sit at the table and lets try to work something out”….. but we have definitely reached the point where we just have to say NO….NO, we are not going to allow this to happen anymore.

    We see more and more people in this country just tired of all the ‘feel good’ ideas on saving the planet, global warming and nonsense like this:

    “We want to strike a balance between protecting the resource and allowing fishing,” council fisheries scientist Myra Brouwer said.”

    No you don’t!

    Interesting, back in Feb 2009, the same Myra Brouwer was quoted in this article: ‘Fishing rules could protect corals’ ( http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20090203/PC1602/302039898 )

    “There are threats that are likely,” Myra Brouwer, council fishery scientist, said. “The council wants to be a step ahead.”

    The council (SAFMC in this case) wants to be one step ahead. The same council that previously wanted a full blown 40 fathom closure to all fishing activities? To wit:

    “Amendment 17B, approved for Secretarial review by the Council in December 2009, would set an ACL of zero (landed catch) for speckled hind and warsaw grouper, prohibiting all harvest. In order to maintain the ACL, all fishing for or possession of deepwater snapper grouper species (snowy grouper, blueline tilefi sh, yellowedge grouper, misty grouper, queen snapper, and silk snapper) would be prohibited beyond a depth of 240 feet.”

    Or how about this which occurred at the same time: (see: http://safmc.net/News/Newsletters/Spring09Update2.pdf )

    Effective February 12, 2009, a series of 8 deepwater marine protected areas have been implemented to protect deepwater snapper grouper species and associated habitat.

    Now I just wonder…. imagine if there were valuable resources situated near these proposed MPA’s….oil…natural gas….REE’s (Rare Earth Elements since it has come up in the news). Or maybe near proposed WMA’s (Wind Management Area’s).

    This is the time to put a full-court press on the politicians in that region and as much, around the country who support these ideas of closing more areas off coastline to fishing related activities.

    Dig in fella’s….with these people we have seen a clear pattern….give a few miles of the ocean, they then feel entitled to take the whole thing!

  2. StripedBassHole says:

    As if we have a voice on any decisions made about any Area encompassed in “THE OBAMA OCEAN POLICY” an Executive Order. This order made by one person has stolen all AMERICANS COMMON PROPERTY in the Policies Area. It failed in Congress as H.R. 3534 “THE CLEAR ACT”. Face it we will not have a VOICE until Congress addresses this RICO action.
    What a JOKE stop the Fishing but allow the damaging PROSPECTING!!!

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