NOAA seeks three-month closures to recover Atlantic red snapper

By Daniel Cusick | 01/15/2025 04:21 PM EST

The proposed rule seeks to recover highly coveted red snapper off the coast of Florida by reducing the number of discarded dead fish from recreational boats.

Fresh red snapper on ice.

Fresh red snapper on ice. Dave Martin/AP

NOAA Fisheries wants to impose seasonal fishing restrictions on 55 species off Florida’s Atlantic coast to advance the recovery of red snapper, whose populations have suffered from overfishing.

The proposed rule, known as Amendment 59 to the existing management plan for snapper and grouper in the South Atlantic, would establish a December-to-February “discard reduction season” for federal waters “to end and prevent overfishing of red snapper while reducing dead discards and providing additional fishing opportunities.”

The agency’s rationale is that an annual bottom fishing closure would significantly reduce the number of red snapper that die and are discarded from fishing vessels. According to NOAA, dead discards from recreational fishing are the leading cause of snapper mortality in South Atlantic waters.

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The rule would prohibit fishermen using hook-and-line gear from fishing, harvesting or possessing any groundfish from designated areas of the snapper-grouper fishery management area along the Florida coast.

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