December 20, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — NOAA Fisheries announced this week that they will withhold nearly 60% of the annual red grouper IFQ commercial allocation on January 1, 2019. That is the amount of an intended cut in the commercial annual catch limit requested by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council at their meeting last October.
During public testimony at the meeting, managers heard from their science advisors, the fishing fleet, and the public that the Gulf’s red grouper stock “is struggling” and “may not be large enough to sustain current harvest levels.”
In 2017, Gulf red grouper landings were the lowest they had been in recent years. Fewer legal-sized red grouper were seen this year, and scientists worry that an extensive red tide off the Florida west coast may hurt the red grouper stock recruitment.
An interim analysis of the stock, a report that updates harvest recommendations while the Council waits for the next stock assessment to be done, had little good news.
The Council asked National Marine Fisheries Service to issue an emergency order cutting the quota from 7.78 mlbs of gutted weight to 3 mlbs, the same level of the 2017 commercial landings.
Withholding distribution of 59.4 percent or 4.78 mlbs of red grouper IFQ commercial allocation will be effective January 1, 2019.
Meanwhile, the Council will initiate a framework amendment to reduce the catch limits of both commercial and recreational fishermen beyond the expiration of the 180-day period covered by the interim or emergency rule.
If the proposed quota reduction does not occur prior to June 1, 2019, then NOAA Fisheries will distribute the withheld quota back to IFQ shareholders in accordance with the regulations.
Members of the public will be asked to comment on the proposed rule after it is published in the Federal Register, which should happen in the coming weeks.
For more information, contact the SERO Sustainable Fisheries Office at (727) 824-5305, weekdays between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
This story was originally published on SeafoodNews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.