Commercial Lobster/Crawfish Management Open Forum
People who depend on lobster for their livelihood need to put their own stamp on new rules coming for the species, say commercial fishermen. “Lobster is a multi-jurisdictional, co-managed species,” said Tony Iarocci, a Marathon fisherman and member of the federal South Atlantic Fishery Management Council. “This is not just the state telling us that changes are coming,” Iarocci said. “We’re dealing with two federal fishery councils and the [Florida Keys] National Marine Sanctuary in addition to the state.”
The Florida Keys Commercial Fishermen’s Association will host an open forum at 1 p.m. Monday, January 7, 2008, at the Marathon Government Center to launch a year-long effort to help shape expected regulatory changes.
“Our long-term goal is a renewable and sustainable resource for all user groups, with minimal impact on the marine environment,” Iarocci said. “We want everybody to be happy with the fishery.” Iarocci said he envisions a working group like the Tortugas 2000 panel that crafted regulations to establish the Tortugas Ecological Reserves, two large no-take zones in the sanctuary. “It’s better to try to work with the divers and all the user groups and be proactive instead of reacting,” Iarocci said. “We’ve got a whole lot to deal with in this fishery.”
Bruce Irwin, chairman of the Fishermen’s Association, said, “Our No. 1 goal is to protect the resource and protect the environment for long-term sustainability. We want to speak with one voice on the state and federal issues coming up.” A two-year effort by state Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission staff and a panel of lay advisors to overhaul Florida’s lobster laws hit snags at a December FWC meeting when final decisions were expected.
Three modest rule changes were made but the state commission delayed decisions on controversial issues such as lobster-trap reduction and allowing the use of manmade underwater lobster habitats by commercial divers. “We need more of a consensus, especially from the industry, to come forward,” Irwin said. “We can’t just have a brawl at the commission meeting and see who wins.”
The working group also can work to “clear up some real misconceptions about our fishing practices,” Irwin said. “It was obvious some people [at the December FWC meeting] do not understand what we do.” Iarocci said mandates in federal law could lead to wholesale changes in the way commercial fishing works in coming years. “Everything the state does still has to go through the federal process,” he said. “When you see the things that are coming down on us, we realize that we have to do something. We can’t just sit here.”
More Florida Keys Lobster.
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