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FWC wraps up meeting in Tallahassee
April 12, 2007
Contacts: Inland issues - Henry Cabbage (850) 488-8843
Marine issues - Lee Schlesinger (850) 487-0554
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Commission (FWC) approved a set of rules Wednesday to clarify
and firm up permit regulations for activities involving sea
turtles. Such activities include nesting surveys, nest
relocation, educational turtle walks, captive facilities,
research and rehabilitation.
Also during Wednesday’s session, Commissioners
adopted new rules concerning importation, possession and sale of
nonnative fish, wildlife and plants. New rules also address
possession, exhibition and caging for venomous reptiles. In
addition, Commissioners adopted a resolution to endorse a
voluntary set of standards for caging and husbandry of captive
reptiles.
In addition, Commissioners approved staff
recommendations to start the imperiled species reclassification
process for the peregrine falcon and another bird called the
smooth-billed ani.
On Thursday, the FWC adopted rule changes for
various reef fish species that take effect July 1. These rule
changes are intended to make reef fish regulations in state
waters consistent with recently approved regulations in federal
waters.
In Atlantic Ocean waters, the new rules allow
recreational fishers to keep one golden tilefish and one snowy
grouper within the five-fish daily aggregate grouper bag limit.
The daily recreational bag limit for Atlantic red porgy will
jump from one fish to three fish per person, and the
recreational minimum size limit for Atlantic vermilion snapper
will rise from 11 to 12 inches total length. The rules also set
commercial trip limits in the Atlantic that are the same as trip
limits in federal waters.
New rules for Atlantic black sea bass include
increasing the recreational minimum size limit from 10 inches
total length to 11 inches total length in 2007, and then to 12
inches total length in 2008, and establishing a June 1 – May 31
harvest season. The rules also require a minimum 2-inch mesh for
the back panel of black sea bass traps in the Atlantic, and
require removal of black sea bass traps in the Atlantic when the
commercial quota is reached.
New reef fish rules in Gulf of Mexico waters
decrease the commercial and recreational minimum size limit for
vermilion snapper from 11 to 10 inches total length, eliminate
the April 22 through May 31 closed season for commercial harvest
of vermilion snapper, establish a zero bag limit for gag, red
and black grouper for captains and crew on for-hire vessels, and
remove the requirement for Class I and Class II commercial red
snapper licenses.
Other new reef fish rules approved by the FWC
designate golden tilefish as a "restricted species” in Florida,
change the minimum size limit of vermillion snapper imported
into Florida from 11 to 10 inches total length, and prohibit
commercial fishermen from harvesting or possessing the
recreational bag limit of reef fish species on commercial trips.
The FWC also passed a rule to extend the area
where harvest of commercial sponges by diving in Gulf waters is
legal westward to Cape San Blas and require that all sponges
harvested by diving be cut rather than removed with a hook. This
rule takes effect July 1.
In other marine fisheries action, Commissioners
proposed rule amendments for snook that would reduce the daily
recreational bag limit from two fish to one on the Atlantic
coast and change the current 27-34 inches total length snook
slot limit to 28-32 inches in Atlantic waters and 28-33 inches
in Gulf, Everglades National Park and Monroe County waters. The
proposed rule also adds the first half of December and all of
February to the closed harvest season in the Gulf, Everglades
and Monroe County, and would allow snook anglers to carry more
than one cast net aboard a vessel. A final public hearing on
these proposals will be held in June.
Commissioners also heard reports on
reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act and federal Gulf red snapper management, and
received an update on development of a vision document for the
future of saltwater fishing in Florida. They also considered
several federal fisheries-management issues and expressed
opposition to a proposed federal exempted fishing permit that
would allow longline fishing for swordfish in an area of east
Florida that is now closed.
The complete agenda and background materials are
available at
MyFWC.com/commission/2007/Apr07/.
The next FWC meeting will be in Melbourne June
13-14. |
