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Judge eases grouper fishing ban

Red grouper is still a no-no for recreational fishermen beyond 9 miles out for two months, but other grouper are fair game.

By TERRY TOMALIN
Published November 1, 2005

	[Times photo: John Pendygraft]
	Randy Adair, 41, a vacationer from Columbus, Ohio, proudly poses for a souvenir photo with a string of grouper after a fishing charter from Hubbard's Marina returned to St. John's Pass Monday. "We were knocking them down today," Adair bragged about his good day fishing.

Sport fishermen cheered a ruling by a federal judge Monday that reverses a proposed two-month ban on recreational grouper fishing in the Gulf of Mexico.

"This is a big day for state of Florida and all saltwater anglers," said Ted Forsgren, director of the Florida Chapter of the Coastal Conservation Association, the state's largest sportfishing lobby. "We see this ruling as a victory."

The decision means that many species of grouper still can be caught in federal waters, beyond 9 miles offshore in the gulf. Red grouper will remain off-limits in those waters, at least until the end of the year.

Red grouper still can be caught in state waters, inside the 9-mile mark, though the species generally is found in deeper waters.

The National Marine Fisheries Service announced in July that recreational anglers in 2004 had caught more than twice as much red grouper as allowed.

As a result, the fisheries service said, the two-month closure was the only way to rebuild the grouper stocks.

Commercial fishermen take about 81 percent of the red grouper; recreational anglers catch the rest. Gag grouper, however, is a shallow-water species that is primarily caught by recreational anglers.

Federal officials said they decided to shut down all grouper fishing out of concern that recreational anglers, denied access to red grouper, would simply shift their attention to gag grouper.

Recreational fishing interests challenged that logic and filed suit in U.S. District Court in Fort Myers.

Judge John E. Steele ruled Monday that the decision by the fisheries service to include species other than red grouper in the two-month rule was "arbitrary, capricious" and "an abuse of discretion."

Steele upheld the federal government's position in other areas, including the assertion that red grouper stocks were overfished and that biologists used "the best available science" to arrive at that conclusion.

"The court made these findings and (we) will respect the ruling," said Roy Crabtree, southeast regional administrator for the fisheries service. "This is America and we are a country ruled by law."

As of 12:01 a.m. today, the rule for grouper in federal waters is that anglers will be allowed to keep five grouper, but none of them may be red grouper.

November and December will remain closed for red grouper only.

"This is a historical day for recreational anglers," said Dennis O'Hern of the Recreational Fishing Alliance, which joined with the CCA in the lawsuit. "It shows that in America, all that matters is if you are on the side of right, and even a little guy can win one now and then."

Not since the 1994 state constitutional amendment to ban inshore netting has an issue galvanized sport fishermen like the proposed grouper closure.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, a multistate organization that helps draft fishery rules, plans to meet Nov. 14 to determine how the red grouper fishery will be managed in 2006.

Commercial fishermen operate on a quota system for red grouper.

The bulk of the fleet operates out of Madeira Beach. The commercial fishery shuts down each winter from Feb. 15 to March 15, the peak spawning time for red grouper. The Marine Fisheries Service is considering including recreational anglers in that closure.

The gulf's commercial longline boats are currently idle because the commercial fishermen filled their quota early this year.

Debate continues within the fishing industry as to whether the shutdowns actually affect consumers, since much of Florida's restaurant and market grouper comes from Mexico.

[Last modified November 1, 2005, 02:15:27]