Saving Seafood

Deadline extended: Louisiana commercial fishermen can apply for COVID-19 aid through Nov. 23

November 6, 2020 — Louisiana commercial fishermen and processors who have lost business because of the COVID-19 pandemic have until Nov. 23 to apply for a share of $14.6 million in federal aid.

The CARES Act, which Congress passed in March, provides $300 million to assist hard-hit fisheries across the U.S. Louisiana is receiving the eighth largest investment of those states and territories.

The original deadline to apply was Oct. 26. But hurricanes Laura, Delta and Zeta and their impact on Louisiana coastal areas prompted the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to extend the deadline.

“The department wants to ensure that everyone impacted by those hurricanes has ample opportunity to apply for the CARES Act relief funds,” Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Jack Montoucet said in a news release. “This extension will provide those persons more time to devote to repairing and getting services to their homes and taking care of the immediate needs of their family.”

Stay-at-home orders and shutdowns states have ordered in an effort to slow the deadly virus’s spread have closed or slowed business at many restaurants and markets, wreaking havoc on the supply chain upon which fishermen usually rely.

Read the full story at Houma Today

Storms extend Louisiana fisheries COVID-19 aid deadline

October 26, 2020 — Damage from Hurricanes Laura and Delta has prompted Louisiana to extend the deadline for fisheries’ workers and businesses to apply for help under a coronavirus pandemic program.

Instead of ending Monday, the application period will now last through Nov. 23, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries said in a news release.

“After a closer look at the damage left by hurricanes Laura and Delta to the fishing community, the department wants to ensure that everyone impacted by those hurricanes has ample opportunity to apply,” Secretary Jack Montoucet said.

He said the extension will give those people more time to repair and get services to their homes and to take care of their families’ immediate needs.

The Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission has $14.6 million in federal coronavirus relief money for Louisiana’s fishing industry.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at WBRZ

LOUISIANA: Anglers get final weekend of red snapper fishing

September 1, 2017 — Louisiana anglers will get a final weekend of red snapper fishing as catch numbers are about 160,000 pounds below the state’s self-imposed limit for 2017.

The latest statistics, released today by the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, show 880,603 pounds of red snapper had been caught as of Aug. 20.

In June, the Wildlife and Fisheries Commission ordered agency Secretary Jack Montoucet to close the season when it appears anglers will meet the state’s self-imposed limit of 1.04 million pounds or by Sept. 4, whichever comes first.

Read the full story at Houma Today

LOUISIANA: Red Snapper fishing likely to continue through Labor Day

August 25, 2017 — BATON ROUGE, La. — Based on the latest LA Creel landings data and this weekend’s weather forecast, LDWF biologists anticipate the red snapper season will remain open through Labor Day.

The latest catch stats from LDWF’s LA Creel, the agency’s near real-time data collecting program, show that 849,227 pounds of red snapper had been caught as of August 13. The last reported amount was 780,769 pounds.

The Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission has ordered LDWF Secretary Jack Montoucet to shut down the red snapper season when it appears anglers will meet the self-imposed limit of 1.04 million pounds.

Read the full story at KATC

LOUISIANA: Anglers get another weekend of red snapper fishing

August 18, 2017 — Louisiana anglers will get another weekend of red snapper fishing as catch numbers are more than 250,000 pounds below the state’s self-imposed limit for 2017.

The latest statistics from the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries show 780,769 pounds of red snapper had been caught as of Aug. 6.

The Wildlife and Fisheries Commission has ordered agency Secretary Jack Montoucet to close the season when it appears anglers will meet the state’s self-imposed limit of 1.04 million pounds.

Louisiana officials said they hope being accountable for the catch limit will help the state’s chances of receiving federal permission to manage its own red snapper season not just in state but in federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico.

Read the full story at Houma Today

LOUISIANA: State seeks approval to test red snapper program

May 26, 2017 — State officials say they hope a trial program could lead to longer red snapper seasons for Louisiana anglers. It’s the latest action in a years-long debate over the seasons’ length and how federal authorities determine it.

“I asked Wildlife and Fisheries to develop a program that could eventually lead to Louisiana controlling red snapper fishing, even in what is determined to be federal waters,” Gov. John Bel Edwards said in a news release today. “This pilot program could not come soon enough, as the federal government has limited anglers to just three days to fish red snapper this year.”

Recreational fishermen have complained that federal authorities have set overly restrictive catch limits and unnecessarily short seasons for red snapper despite a rebound in the fish’s numbers. Environmentalists and federal regulators, including NOAA Fisheries, contend the species still needs protection after years of overfishing.

Louisiana has long sought authority to manage red snapper fishing in the Gulf of Mexico’s federal waters, which begin three miles off its coast but have recently been extended to nine miles for the species.

“Just like the governor, we have heard from anglers across Louisiana and it is clear what they want most is the flexibility to fish for red snapper when it makes sense for them and their families,” state Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Jack Montoucet said. “So we are going to test a new way of doing this.

Read the full story at Houma Today 

LOUISIANA: Former LDWF boss claims allegations ‘fabricated’

January 6, 2017 — Former state Wildlife and Fisheries secretary Robert Barham used the public comment period during Thursday’s Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission meeting to refute allegations of misspending and fiscal irresponsibility during his eight years at that post.

Most of the questions center around LDWF spending in the months and years following the BP-Deepwater Horizon oil disaster.

The allegations came during Charlie Melancon’s stormy 11-month tenure as head of the state agency. Melancon resigned the position last week, and Gov. J.B. Edwards named state Rep. Jack Montoucet, D-Crowley, to take the post effective Jan. 16.

“I’m here to address the news reports of the last year,” Barham said. “When I took the job (LDWF secretary) eight years ago, the department was entrenched in systematic financial mismanagement.

“It became clear the department would be in the red within a year, and we made programmatic changes through operation and management decisions that we would be four current years in the black.”

Read the full story at the Acadiana Advocate