hookset
09-30-2009, 07:09 PM
Black sea bass fishing to be stopped for 6 months
By Kirk Moore (kmoore@app.com) • STAFF WRITER • September 30, 2009
Federal officials are imposing an emergency six-month closing of the recreational black sea bass fishery, a move that captains say will idle much of the party boat industry this fall.
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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the closure to begin Monday (Oct. 5) is needed to prevent exceeding the 2009 catch limits by as much as 225 percent, based on trends reported by an annual federal fishing survey.
But fishing advocates say regulators have obtained new biological information — including a first-ever stock assessment — that show the species is not in an overfished condition, as previous scientific models had shown.
"You've got an extremely healthy fishery, and a stock assessment that validates what we're being told and seeing with our own eyes," said charter boat captain Adam Nowalsky. "And yet they're closing the fishery down."
"It's a couple of hundred guys (boat operators) but think about what it's going to do to the coastal economy," Nowalsky added.
Black sea bass, caught where they congregate around wrecks and rocky bottom, are a mainstay for autumn anglers who also purchase meals and services in port towns, he said.
Advisory committees to the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council have differed on how far to raise this year's 1.14-million-pound recreational catch limit.
The council's monitoring committee recommended 4.8 million pounds in overall black sea bass quota for 2010, based on the new information, while the science and statistical committee sought a more cautious approach of 2.3 million pounds, owing to remaining uncertainty in the new biological numbers, committee members said.
By Kirk Moore (kmoore@app.com) • STAFF WRITER • September 30, 2009
Federal officials are imposing an emergency six-month closing of the recreational black sea bass fishery, a move that captains say will idle much of the party boat industry this fall.
http://www.app.com/gcicommonfiles/sr/graphics/common/adlabel_horz.gif
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the closure to begin Monday (Oct. 5) is needed to prevent exceeding the 2009 catch limits by as much as 225 percent, based on trends reported by an annual federal fishing survey.
But fishing advocates say regulators have obtained new biological information — including a first-ever stock assessment — that show the species is not in an overfished condition, as previous scientific models had shown.
"You've got an extremely healthy fishery, and a stock assessment that validates what we're being told and seeing with our own eyes," said charter boat captain Adam Nowalsky. "And yet they're closing the fishery down."
"It's a couple of hundred guys (boat operators) but think about what it's going to do to the coastal economy," Nowalsky added.
Black sea bass, caught where they congregate around wrecks and rocky bottom, are a mainstay for autumn anglers who also purchase meals and services in port towns, he said.
Advisory committees to the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council have differed on how far to raise this year's 1.14-million-pound recreational catch limit.
The council's monitoring committee recommended 4.8 million pounds in overall black sea bass quota for 2010, based on the new information, while the science and statistical committee sought a more cautious approach of 2.3 million pounds, owing to remaining uncertainty in the new biological numbers, committee members said.