SAVANNAH, GA (March 5, 2009) – After three decades as a charter fishing guide, Steve Amick says he’s never seen red snapper as large or plentiful as he did last year off Georgia’s Atlantic coast. Soon, catching them could be illegal.
Scientists for the federal government say the bountiful catch reported from Florida to North Carolina is a shallow illusion. The red snapper population, they say, is dwindling and needs a break from decades of overfishing.
A federal agency — the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council — voted 7-6 Thursday in favor of a six-month ban on red snapper fishing off the southern Atlantic seaboard, despite cries from fisherman that the fish are plentiful and their business will sink under any ban.
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