Misinformation has spread in both traditional and online
media about the current proposed Red Snapper allocation change under
consideration by the Gulf of Mexico Fisheries Management Council.
The Louisiana Restaurant Association (LRA), as well as the
four other Gulf State restaurant associations, have come under fire for
allegedly playing an integral role in lining up against the recreational
fishermen in favor of letting commercial fishermen ship “as much as 80 percent
of the commercial red snapper harvest out of the country.”
The source of the misinformation has yet to be identified,
but it has rapidly spread from Louisiana to Florida to Kansas City to Capitol
Hill.
According to a spokesperson for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), fishery trade categories are based on
Harmonized Tariff Schedule for imports and the US Census Bureau ‘Schedule B’
for exports. Currently, there is no specific breakout for Red Snapper due to
the lack of individual trade data because international exports are so small.
As a result Red Snapper trade is listed in the ‘other’ category, not separated
out.
Where does Gulf Red
Snapper go?
A majority of Gulf Red Snapper ends up on the plates of more
than 56 million residents of the Gulf States, as well as millions more on the
East Coast.
“We are on target to buy more than a million pounds, or 20
percent, of the total Gulf Red Snapper harvest,” said Houston-based Sysco
Louisiana Seafood chairman Jim Gossen, who sits on the board of the Gulf Seafood Institute (GSI). “We sell 99.5 percent of that to our customers within
the state of Texas, and none is shipped overseas.”
The percentage of Gulf Red Snapper leaving the country is
less than five percent, with a majority of that going to Montreal and Toronto,
which has a craving for the prized Gulf seafood.
“I ship approximately 70,000 pounds of red snapper to Canada
over the course of a year,” said GSI’s board member David Krebs, president of
Florida’s Ariel Seafood, a Fish Trax member and one of the largest suppliers of
snapper out of country. “Because of transportation restrictions, the fish is
mainly enjoyed on the East Coast and Gulf States. Less than five percent of the
total catch leaves the country.”
The Gulf of Mexico Fisheries Management Council is currently
considering Reef Fish Amendment No. 28, Chapter 2—Management Alternatives. The
amendment alters traditional allocation of red snapper between the commercial
fishing industry and the recreational fishermen.
Two alternatives are currently before the Council on the
issue of allocation.
Alternative 1 is based on an aggregate red snapper quota of
11 million pounds; commercial fishermen would be allocated 5.610 million and
recreational fishermen 5.390 million, effectively keeping the current 51/49
split.
The Council has thrown its support behind Alternative 5,
which would shift allocation percentages to 75 percent recreational and 25
percent commercial for aggregate red snapper quota greater than 9.12 million
pounds.
Based on an aggregate red snapper quota of 11 million
pounds, commercial fishermen would be allocated 5.126 million and recreational
5.874 million, effective reducing commercial share by approximately eight
percent, or more than 500,000 pounds.
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| Stan Harris |
The LRA, along with the Texas
Restaurant Association, Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, Mississippi
Hospitality and Restaurant Association and the Alabama Restaurant Association,
has thrown support for the Gulf Council to adopt Alternative 1 that would keep
the current split ratio. None of the Gulf Restaurant Associations favor taking away
any current quota from recreational fishermen. In addition, the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board passed a resolution encouraging the Gulf
Council to adopt Alternative 1.
“Our organization has been sensitive to the inconsistencies
in recreational red snapper management practices and its impact on the
recreational and charter segments,” said Stan Harris, LRA President/CEO. “Our
testimony before the Gulf Council implored council members to consider that any
increase in total catch allocation retain the same 51/49 sector breakdown that
currently exists. The LRA is not opposing “the recreational sector,” just
simply asking for maintaining these historical percentages.”
According to the Gulf Council documents, the recreational
sector has exceeded its catch limit six out of the last seven years; with the
only year not being exceeded was during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. In
addition, the National Marine Fisheries Service, as well as the Gulf Council,
has continuously failed to provide an accurate count of the recreational
harvest.
Unlike the commercial sector, which counts each fish caught,
the recreational sector has continuously refused to participate in any type of
program that would accurately log the exact numbers caught.
A recent report published by the Theodore Roosevelt
Conservation Partnership, a D.C. lobbyist and advocacy group representing
approximately 400,000 saltwater fishermen, stated there are approximately 11
million recreational saltwater fishermen in the U.S. – roughly the population
of New York and Los Angeles. Of those less than half a million are directly
represented by any recreational saltwater fishing organization.
Recreational sidesteps
data collection
Recreational fishing organizations have refused efforts to
accurately record the recreational catch by inferring data collection is
already in place.
Federal recreational saltwater fisheries are open access. A
fisherman, owning a dingy or a yacht, needs only a license to fish in federal
waters; there is no accountability, or enforcement. Commercial fishermen in the
same waters are held to a different standard, accurately monitoring their catch
and subject to enforcement.
Recreational side monitoring only occurs in state waters
where catch times, slot and bag limits are often set. These state programs are
the basis of the claim that recreational catch is being monitored.
Recreational groups have also cited the economic impact of
recreational fishermen as a reason for increasing catch limits. Tens of
thousands of recreational anglers annually venture into the five Gulf States.
The Gulf States restaurant associations have been charged
with protecting the interests of their residents, as well as the millions of
visitors venturing into the five Gulf States to dine upon the same species
recreational anglers prize.
Culinary tourism is a rapidly growing industry for all Gulf States.
According to a recently released report from the Louisiana Office of Tourism
under Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne, culinary tourism is one of the fastest growing
tourism sectors. More than 75 percent of tourists visiting Louisiana alone come
for the seafood.
“They are coming to enjoy not only our unique preparations,
but also the great Gulf fish we offer in our restaurants,” said Harris.
The fight over red snapper between the commercial and
recreational sectors has to stop, but so does the spread of misinformation. The
question remains, how to make it happen?
