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Snapper season could help fish houses
Published October 4, 2005
Brazoria County might attract an influx of boaters from north of Galveston for the fall red snapper season, which continues through Monday.
Hurricane Rita left many fisheries without power, and boaters who normally unload at northern Gulf fish houses will look for open ports that can ice their catches, said Larry Robinson, regional director for Texas Parks and Wildlife’s Coastal Fisheries division.
The potential increase in southern Gulf port traffic also might increase the profits of local fish houses, he said.
Commercial red snapper’s 10-day fall season opened at noon Saturday. Federal regulators use the time limits as well as a total commercial quota of 4.65 million pounds for the year to limit pressure on Gulf Coast red snapper.
The season is limited to fishermen with valid reef fishing permits and Class 1 or 2 red snapper permits, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service. The snapper must be at least 15 inches long.
Snapper yield is expected to be good this season; however, the prices might rise, said B & B Seafood owner Sandra Barbree.
“The prices are going to rise because of the fuel costs for the boats,” Barbree said. “The hurricane affects shrimping because it stirs up the bottom but it shouldn’t affect the snapper.”
People come from all over the Gulf of Mexico to catch the red snapper, Barbree said. Most of the snapper is shipped within the state, but shipping nationally is one problem Robinson said she expects to see this fall season.
“The infrastructure to handle these types of products are not all in place because the hurricanes have left so much damage,” Robinson said.
Snapper has a spring and fall season, and 10 days per month are given to catch and sell the fish. A total of 762,797 pounds remain from the spring quota and were added to the fall season quota of 2,312,797 million.
The next spring season will open in February.
Lucretia Fernandez covers coastal issues for The Facts. Contact her at (979) 237-0150.
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