Florida’s once-vibrant fishing industry is seeking federal help to survive the high fuel prices and poor consumer economy along with tight fisheries laws. Commercial fishing trips out of Volusia County in 2010 were down 49 percent from 2000 numbers. The number of registered boats in Volusia County is down 22 percent from 2000 registrations.
According to local fishermen such conditions were never happened in Florida. They said that the entire fishing industry — a major part of the Florida economy — is suffering. Statewide sales of boats, engines and other related items are down 8.1 percent from 2009, and down 44 percent from the industry high in 2005.
Since 2005 there was downward trend because it shows an economic slowdown not solely attributable to the Great Recession, which began in December 2007. Florida’s $16 billion boating industry and $8 billion fishing industry are being vexed by factors that won’t be corrected by an improvement in the economy.
Federal restrictions on fishing for certain species have harmed the fishing industry all along the East Coast. Fishermen in Flagler and Volusia counties have been affected by a federal ban on catching red snapper in a large area in the South Atlantic. The federal government should revisit the snapper ban. Federal officials can put Florida’s fishing industry on the road to recovery by removing the unnecessary ban on catching red snapper.
