May 15, 2009
Commercial Fishermen And Conservation Groups Protect Loggerhead Turtles
Longline grouper fishermen, working with Ocean Conservancy and Oceana, will not fish for grouper in certain specified areas this summer in an effort to help the threatened loggerhead sea turtles. The action follows the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council’s vote to close an area of the Gulf of Mexico to longline fishing.
As a result, there will not be as much Florida grouper in restaurants or retail stores through August. However, the commercial vertical-line fishing boats in the eastern Gulf of Mexico will still be able to target reef fish, including shallow-water grouper (gag, red, black, yellowfin, and yellowmouth grouper, rock hind, red hind, and scamp). Additionally, longline fishermen can continue to target deepwater grouper species (misty, snowy, yellowedge, Warsaw or speckled hind) until the quota is met, likely later this summer.
"Fishermen do not want to kill threatened sea turtles,” said Vicki Cornish, Ocean Conservancy’s vice president of marine wildlife conservation. “And no one wants to see fishermen put out of business. This agreement signifies a willingness for different interest groups to come together to find solutions that consider the best interests of both the turtles and the fishing fleet. The agreement approved today not only helps to forge a way forward on what has been a very contentious issue, but also lays a solid foundation for our groups to work together in the future for better fisheries, safer and better gear to protect turtles, and a healthier Gulf of Mexico."
Said Bobby Spaeth, executive director of the Southern Offshore Fishing Association: "A more extensive closure would have resulted in permanent damage to the commercial fleet. Our industry is already looking at an emergency closure this summer, and we would not have been able to sustain another blow like that. We need partners that will help find lasting solutions. Both Ocean Conservancy and Oceana were willing to work with us to help solve this problem. When the opportunity to partner with groups that do not often see eye-to-eye comes along and it works this well, it makes a powerful point in itself."
Look for Florida grouper at your favorite seafood market or grocery store. If grouper is unavailable in your area, Florida mahi-mahi or red and yellowtail snapper are quite plentiful this time of year. For recipes and information about grouper and other Florida seafood, visit www.fl-seafood.com/recipes
For more information:
Paul Balthrop
(850) 488-0163
balthrp@doacs.state.fl.us
