Widely divergent views of so-called catch shares for fish species will dominate a federal fisheries session Thursday in Key Largo.
"Catch shares have become synonymous with job loss and fleet reductions," said Bill Kelly, executive director of the Florida Keys Commercial Fishermen's Association.
Under current federal fishery planning, regional managers establish annual catch limits for various species. Once those have been determined, one option could be rationing "catch shares" of the allowable catch to commercial and recreational fisheries.
In the recreational sector, that generally would translate to bag limits and seasons. Commercial fishermen would be given individual shares, in poundage, they can catch during a season.
Groups such as the Environmental Defense Fund contend a properly designed catch-share program can protect fishing stocks while letting commercial fishermen run their businesses more effectively.
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