At a meeting in Jekyll Island, Ga. the council is going to vote on the changes to black sea bass regulations. The council is said to follow the advice of its own Snapper-Grouper Committee, local fishermen are sure to be unhappy with the outcome. On Wednesday morning, the committee approved the following alternatives in Regulatory Amendment 9 regarding the recreational black sea bass fishery.
According to council member Tom Swatzel of Murrells Inlet, there should be a reduction in the black sea bass daily bag limit from 15 fish to 5 fish per person per day. A spawning season closure March 1 to April 30(also would apply to the commercial fishery). The committee studied the National Marine Fisheries Service’s analysis of how much of a reduction in the black sea bass recreational fishery’s daily bag limits would be necessary to avoid a seasonal closure.
The authority said that the black sea bass are currently closed to recreational anglers after the species’ annual quota was met and the fishery was shut down from Feb. 12 through June 1.If the spawning season closure is approved and implemented, black sea bass would continue in future years to be off-limits when charter and party boat operators need them the most, in March and April.
Swatzel said Thursday afternoon he isn’t in favor of the spawning season closure for the species. He added that the potential drop in the daily bag limit from 15 fish per person to five is a drastic one for black sea bass and would represent a major change from liberal limits in the history of regulations for the species.
