Snapper Season Shorter Despite Higher Quota

Snapper Season Shorter Despite Higher Quota: "For the first time in years, the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council voted at its February meeting in Mobile to raise the total allowable catch (TAC) for red snapper. Unfortunately, that will not translate into immediate relief for the beleaguered recreational sector and its charter boat fleet.

In fact, the 2010 red snapper season will be the shortest on record, according to Roy Crabtree, regional administrator of NOAA Fisheries Service’s Southeast Region. To keep the recreational sector from going over its quota, which it did last year by more than a million-and-a-half pounds, Crabtree said the season will likely run from 51 to 60 days with a start date of June 1. A final season closing date will not be determined until May, Crabtree said. The TAC was raised from 5 million pounds to 6.945 million pounds with a 51-percent split going to the commercial sector and the remainder to the recreational sector."