New stock assessment a chance for Gulf Council to fix mistakes of the past

HOUSTON (6-12-2013) - In a letter to the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, Coastal Conservation Association cites the new red snapper stock assessment as an opportunity for federal managers to fix the mistakes of the recent past by allocating the entire available increase in red snapper annual catch limits to the recreational sector.

“Though this action will not account for the harm that federal mismanagement of the red snapper resource has imposed on anglers across the Gulf, it will begin to repair the damage and begins to recognize the needs and potential of the recreational sector,” said Chester Brewer, chairman of CCA’s National Government Relations Committee.

While the shortest recreational red snapper seasons on record have cost jobs and revenue for Gulf Coast economies, the commercial sector has thrived under its catch share program in which a handful of businesses own the right to harvest 51 percent of the annual quota of red snapper in the Gulf. The greatly expanded catch limits that have been proposed present a unique opportunity for the Gulf Council to also address the outdated allocation of red snapper, which was last set in the mid-1980s. A report by Gentner Consulting Group that looked at the increase in potential economic value and total sales from allocating 75 and 100 percent of the increases available makes an overwhelming case for the recreational sector.

Gulf-Wide Season Set at 28 Days

Earlier this year, NOAA Fisheries published an emergency rule giving the agency the authority to adjust seasons off each Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) state based on whether their state-water seasons and bag limits were consistent with federal regulations. On May 31, 2013, the U.S. District Court in Brownsville, Texas, set aside that emergency rule.

As a result of this Court decision, the federal recreational red snapper season must be the same in federal waters off all five Gulf states. Considering the catches expected later in the year during the extended state-water seasons off Texas, Louisiana, and Florida, NOAA Fisheries projects the Gulf-wide federal recreational red snapper season can be 28 days long. Federal waters of the Gulf will close to recreational red snapper harvest at 12:01 a.m., June 29, 2013.

NOAA Fisheries reminds all federally permitted for-hire vessels that they must abide by the stricter federal regulations, and after the federal water closure, they will not be allowed to harvest and retain recreationally caught red snapper in open state waters.

For more information about how the season was calculated, please see the NOAA Fisheries 2013 Red Snapper Recreational Season Length Report.

A list of frequently asked questions can be found at the NOAA Fisheries Southeast Regional Office Web site.

CCA commits to habitat enhancement through reef project at rig site

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and Apache Corporation have agreed to explore ways to preserve the fish habitat at Ship Shoal 26, also known as the Pickets, a popular hotspot for anglers, especially those seeking speckled trout and redfish.

At the recommendation of the Department, Apache Corporation, owner of the platform, agreed to delay the decommissioning the structure and will foot the bill for a water bottom survey to determine the extent of rock and shell pads present.  LDWF biologists believe the rock and shell structures still see a significant amount of production, even if the main structure were to be removed. The oil field has reached the end of its productive life and the structures are required to be removed under federal regulations.

When an oil-field structure is removed from an area, but the associated rock pad around the base remains or is enhanced with additional appropriate material, the area will continue to provide habitat for surrounding species.

Speckled trout and redfish are typically associated with low to mid-relief structure, which provide a refuge from currents, where they can remain in an area without expending energy while preying on food as it is carried across the structure.

Sen. Vitter files bill to streamline process, expand reefing areas for energy structures

WASHINGTON DC (5-31-13) - With the clock ticking towards removal of an ever-increasing number of energy platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) has filed legislation that would make it easier for operators to leave those structures in the marine environment and continue serving as artificial reefs.

“A number of bureaucratic obstacles have been created that make it even more difficult for energy companies to elect to keep those structures in the Gulf for habitat purposes rather than removing them for scrap,” said Pat Murray, president of Coastal Conservation Association. “We are grateful for Sen. Vitter for targeting the red tape that has been causing some of these valuable platforms to be removed unnecessarily. As anglers, we share his goal of leaving as much of that structure in the Gulf as possible.”

Due to extraordinary liability issues, it is virtually impossible to leave the platforms standing upright indefinitely, but options do exist for coastal states to assume liability for structures that are cut and placed in designated artificial reefing areas. Sen. Vitter’s bill (S.1079) contains important steps to expedite the application process for new structures to be approved for state-run Rigs to Reefs programs.

“In our extensive dealings in this issue, one of the hurdles often cited by industry is the exorbitant length of time it takes to get a ruling on whether a specific rig can be a candidate for a Rigs to Reef program,” said Murray. “This bill requires a decision not more than 150 days after the application is submitted. That is a key provision because the pace of removals is poised to increase markedly over the next two years and an expedited process will allow far more structures to be reefed rather than removed.”

LAFITTE – Governor Bobby Jindal announced that BP has agreed to fund approximately $340 million in restoration projects for Louisiana. This investment is part of the $1 billion that BP agreed to invest for early restoration of damaged natural resources resulting from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

BP has agreed to fund approximately $340 million for the restoration of four barrier islands from Terrebonne Parish to the east bank of Plaquemines Parish and two Fish Stock Research and Enhancement Centers.

In 2010, Louisiana was the first state to request that BP make a down payment to immediately begin restoring the damage the spill caused to the Gulf and coastal communities.  In April of 2011, BP finally agreed to the state’s request when they agreed to make a down payment of $1 billion for restoration projects across the Gulf.

Workshops to focus on recreational fisheries conservation, 
habitat and economic restoration in wake of oil spill

BATON ROUGE, La. – The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership and its marine sportfishing partners will hold an innovative series of workshops across Gulf of Mexico states this spring to identify opportunities to restore and enhance recreational fishing through recovery efforts associated with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

The Gulf Recreational Fishing Restoration Workshops are a product of the TRCP’s collaboration with the American Sportfishing Association, Center for Coastal Conservation and Coastal Conservation Association, along with charter fishermen, marina owners, state and federal fisheries managers and recreational anglers.

The workshops will take place in all five Gulf states, beginning in St. Petersburg, Fla., on May 1 then moving to Orange Beach, Ala., on May 15; Gulfport, Miss., on May 16; Houston on May 20; and concluding in New Orleans on May 21.