Department of the Interior Announces Largest Expansion of Hunting and Fishing Opportunities in U.S. Fish and Wildlife History
Last week, the Department of the Interior (DOI) announced the largest expansion of hunting and sport fishing opportunities in the history of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In total, the final rule will deliver 1,488 new hunting and sport fishing opportunities across 32 state and will increase access at 111 field stations, including 107 national wildlife refuges and four national fish hatcheries. It also includes first-ever hunting or sport fishing opportunities at 14 refuges and three hatcheries, reflecting continued progress toward maximizing access where compatible with conservation goals.
ASA wrote a letter in support of the proposed expansion back in June. Click the link below to read the full release from the DOI.
Comments in Support of New South Atlantic Red Snapper EFPs Due Aug 25
Florida, Georgia and South Carolina have applied for new EFPs that would allow recreational harvest of red snapper in state and Federal waters during October. Additional fishing days may be allowed in December if the state’s harvest limit has not been met.
The applications for these EFPs address the court’s decision on the prior EFPs while maintaining the original purpose of the EFPs: to improve data on recreational fishing effort, catch, and discards of red snapper in the South Atlantic to inform the development of a long-term red snapper state management strategy. The EFPs will also evaluate mandatory electronic reporting programs for monitoring catch, provide recreational fishermen on privately owned vessels and for-hire fishermen with increased fishing opportunities for red snapper, quantify angler participation and characterize angler behavior, and collect related biological information from the fishery.
Don’t wait! Click the link below and make your voice heard today.
Pacific Bluefin Tuna Are Recovering. Now Comes the Hard Part.
Decades of international commercial overfishing depressed Pacific bluefin tuna populations to historically low levels from 2009 to 2012, with populations falling to as low as 2% of their unfished potential. This precipitous decline prompted efforts to drastically reduce quotas and commercial fishing pressure beginning in 2011. Reduced international commercial fishing pressure, combined with favorable ocean conditions, led to rebuilding the Pacific bluefin tuna populations and increased opportunities for West Coast anglers.
As international commercial harvest pressure grows and critical management decisions loom, five leading recreational fishing organizations have united to fund science that will help ensure Pacific bluefin tuna continue to recover for generations to come.
Click the link below to read the full write up from AFTCO Chairman, Bill Shedd.
About The American Sportfishing Association
The American Sportfishing Association ((ASA) is the sportfishing industry’s trade association committed to representing the interests of the sportfishing and boating industries as well as the entire sportfishing community. We give the industry and anglers a unified voice when emerging laws and policies could significantly affect sportfishing business or sportfishing itself. ASA invests in long-term ventures to ensure the industry will remain strong and prosperous, as well as safeguard and promote the enduring economic, conservation and social values of sportfishing in America. ASA also gives America’s 57 million anglers a voice in policy decisions that affect their ability to sustainably fish on our nation’s waterways through Keep America Fishing, our national angler advocacy campaign. America’s anglers generate more than $50 billion in retail sales with a $230.5 billion impact on the nation’s economy, creating employment for 1.1 million people.
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