New conservation and management measures adopted for both fish and fishermen
Columbia, S.C. – With the closing of this year’s legislative session, the South Carolina general assembly passed five conservation and fisheries management measures that will benefit the state’s envied marine resources and its recreational anglers. The adoption of these measures caps a remarkable effort by the volunteers and members of Coastal Conservation Association South Carolina (CCA SC), the state’s leading marine conservation and recreational angling advocacy group, which worked with both lawmakers and fisheries managers to shepherd the five pieces of legislation through the process. The new laws vary from adjusting size and creel limits to passage of a 365-day recreational angling license.
“The fisheries legislation that CCA SC dealt with this session was extensive by any measure,” said Mike Able, CCA SC government relations chairman. “In a process that generally sees one or maybe two pieces of proposed legislation in an entire two-year session, it was quite remarkable to have five pieces of legislation that impacted marine fisheries and anglers in the first year.”
The cornerstone legislation for the advocacy group dealt with standardizing the state-wide creel limit for one of the Palmetto State’s most popular species of fish, flounder. For nearly five years the state has had a split creel limit on the popular species of 10 fish per angler in the Waccamaw Neck and Grand Strand portion of the state with a 20 fish creel limit in the remainder. Beginning July1, 2014, the regulations will be 15 fish per angler statewide with a boat limit of 30 fish; a step in the right direction according to CCA SC and backed by studies conducted by the state Department of Natural Resources that indicate the species numbers are trending down. CCA SC worked with Senator Yancey McGill to address angler’s management concerns for the popular species. The statewide size limit of 14 inches remains unchanged.
Tarpon is another species that will see a size limit adjustment in state waters. A size limit of 77 inches (Fork Length) was adopted for the first time for this long-lived, highly migratory species that visits the state from as early as May through September. As an avid angler and outdoorsman, Senator Chip Campsen was instrumental in championing this conservation measure for a species that is targeted by a dedicated portion of the recreational angling community in South Carolina.
Convinced that many of the most successful marine fisheries management efforts have been engineered at the state level, CCA SC joined Rep. Stephen Goldfinch in passage of legislation that calls for the implementation of state management measures for black sea bass (BSB), one of the state’s most popular and accessible near-shore species. BSB has been under a federal management “constant catch” recovery program since 2006, which has locked in artificially low catch limits even as the stock has rebounded significantly. Recreational anglers are encountering BSB more frequently and catching their quota far more quickly, only to have access to the fishery severely restricted. Anglers had just a 90-day season in 2012. Consequently, BSB is no longer so much a conservation issue as a management issue. The new state legislation provides for a return to a year-round fishery in state waters, out to three miles, with size and creel limits mirroring federal regulations.
In a first for Palmetto State sportsmen, recreational saltwater anglers will be the first to have the opportunity to buy a 365-day license; a significant change in the state’s license process that previously called for the expiration of hunting and fishing licenses on June 30 of every year. The 365-day license concept is a change that the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) feels is warranted and has wanted to make for some time, but has been forced to delay due to logistics and budgetary constraints.
“Because of its unique management structure, CCA SC first suggested to a Senate committee in last year’s legislative session that the recreational saltwater fishing license would be an ideal choice to aid the SCDNR in the implementation of this process,” said Charles Farmer, CCA SC‘s legislative director. “Partnering with SCDNR leadership on the implementation of this legislation, we fully believe that this will not only provide the road map for the license structure change, but will also be a wonderful benefit to recreational anglers and eventually all the sportsmen of the state.”
In addition to the many changes listed above, legislation spearheaded by Rep. Nelson Hardwick prohibiting the practice of gigging fish during daylight hours was also passed by both chambers of the General Assembly. All of these measures have been signed by the governor.
“The number of legislative fisheries issues in this session was impressive, as was the level of engagement by legislators on both the House and Senate committees,” said Scott Whitaker, CCA SC executive director. “To simply monitor that many issues during a session is a task, but to be able to engage each issue on behalf of the recreational angling community speaks volumes about the level of advocacy sophistication that CCA SC has achieved.”
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