Economic Impact Reef Building and Saltwater Fishing in the State of Florida - Presented April 22,2008
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Economic Impact
Reef Building and Saltwater
Fishing in the State of Florida
Presented April 22,2008
By: Candy Hansard
Candy@valp.net
Three Issues • Economic Impact and the need to Save Artificial Reef Building in Florida • Need to streamline the ACOE Permitting Process to promote more Artificial Reef Building off our coast • Economic Impact of Recreational Fishing and the need for Responsible and Accountable Management of our Fishery
Artificial Reefs give taxpayers a
good return on their investment!
• In 2003, over $400 Million Dollars were
spent on Goods and Services directly tied
to the Recreational use of Artificial Reefs
in the Florida Panhandle from Pensacola to
Panama City*
• This Created over 8 Thousand Jobs*
• These jobs represented over $84 Million in
Salaries Paid to Florida Residents!*
*Source: “Creating Marine Habitat The Artificial Reef” DVD 2003
Produced by: Florida Fish & Wildlife and Reef Fish Restoration
Artificial REEFS are Good for our
Economy and our Fishery!
According to a study
done by the University
of West Florida, The
sinking of the Oriskany
brought 2 Million
Dollars to Escambia Co.
in the first year after
deployment.
1.2 Million was spent
on Dive Trips alone!
It is also credited with
Millions of Dollars
worth of Media
Coverage!
Benefits of Private Reef Building
• Provides Habitat for Fish
• Helps to create a Sustainable Fishery
• Reduces Fishing Pressure on Public Reefs
• Reduces Conflicts between the Charter Boats
and Private Recreational Fishermen
• Private Reefs Experience less pressure;
therefore, the fish inhabiting these reefs have a
better chance of survival.
• Helps improve our Economy!
• Improves Fishery at NO Cost to Taxpayers
Effectiveness of Chicken Transfer Cages as Artificial Reef Systems This Photo was taken November 8, 2007 by Keith Mille FWC, 9 months and 2 days after this 1/8” Steel Chicken Coop Reef was deployed. This photo alone indicates the effectiveness of Chicken Coops to provide habitat for a diverse population of Recreationally targeted species. Notice the Abundance of Red Snappers on this very young reef system!
More Evidence of Effectiveness
This Reef is only 9 months old. Photo by Keith Mille FWC
Again, Snappers as far as the eye can see!
Evidence of Diversity on Chicken Coop Reefs Deployed in Destin
Stability of Chicken Coop Reefs
Historical Documentation
*They are in the tidal area and are in and out of water with the tide. They were
deployed in October 1992 and are still in excellent condition. (*Cindy Halsey)
Importance of Artificial Reefs
in Improving the Fishery
• The Majority of underwater landscape off the coast of Northwest
Florida is Barren Sandy Bottom.
AKA “The Wet Desert”
• In Northwest Florida, less than 5% of the underwater surface is
Natural Hard Bottom.*
• Without Artificial Reefs, there would be very few fish in the Florida
Panhandle.
• Please keep in mind that prior to deploying
the reefs showcased in this presentation,
there was no structure at this location to
support these recreationally important fish
& other sea life.
(Sandy Bottom to Habitat in a Splash!)
*FWC “Creating Marine Habitat
The Artificial Reef.” 2003Artificial Reefs are the only proven method
of improving the fishery and our economy.
A disproportionate amount of taxpayer money has
been spent creating multiple “assumption based”
reports that conclude the need for Government
Regulations to improve the health of our fishery.
Only a small fraction of taxpayers money spent on our
fishery is allocated to Artificial Reef Building.
More Reefs = More Fish = Healthier Economy
Please Support & Fund Artificial Reef Building!Jacksonville District
ARMY Corps of Engineers Proposal
Increase Steel thickness requirement
for Artificial Reefs from 1/8th” to ½”
If implemented, this requirement, will effectively
Kill Private Artificial Reef Building Efforts by the
Charter Boats, Private Rec. Fishermen & Non-Profit
Organizations.
It will drive up the cost of Publicly funded reefs if
our government can even find any vessels that meet
the requirement!
Barges - 3/8th” thick when they’re brand new!
Many Sections of the Oriskany would not have passed the ½” Req.We need More Permitted Areas! • In Order for Florida to be able to continue to attract fishermen to our coastline, we need more permitted areas to build Artificial Reefs. • Our current permitted areas are not big enough to meet the needs of NW Florida’s Recreational Fishing industry. • Alabama is quickly gaining a Reputation for having the best fishing on the Gulf Coast. This is hurting Florida’s Economy as we lose tourists to Alabama.
Okaloosa County
LAARS Permitted Sites
3 LAARS Permitted
sites that include
221.7 Sq Miles of
Permitted Areas
open to Private
Artificial Reef
Building.Escambia County
LAARS Permitted Area Sites
These 2 areas
combined total
120 Square Miles
of Permitted Drop
Zones open to
Private Artificial
Reef Building.Bay County
LAARS Permitted Sites
LAARS Permit sites
encompass a total sea
floor area of 123.13
square miles open to
Private Artificial Reef
Building.Alabama’s Permitted Sites
Alabama’s extremely
small coastline
enjoys 1,260 square
Miles of Permitted
area open to private
Reef Building!Compare Coastlines
The Mobile District of the
Army Corps of Engineers
has Granted Alabama
approximately 1260 sq.
miles of Permitted area
open to Private Reef
Building.
In comparison, The
Jacksonville District of
the ACOE which controls
permitting in the Florida
Panhandle has only
granted 464.83 square
Alabama = 1,260 Square Miles miles of permitted areas
open to Private Artificial
Entire Florida Panhandle = Reef Building for the
entire Florida Panhandle.
464.83 Sq. MilesSame Federal Agency
Different Districts
Why is Florida so far Behind?
We know reefs help our fishery and our economy so why aren’t we permitting more
Area and encouraging more Private Reef Building and funding more Public Reefs?Economic Effects
Saltwater Fishing
in the
State of FloridaStatistics are from the “2006 National survey of Fishing, Hunting and Wildlife
Associated Recreation” Published by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Page 27
“In Thousands of
Dollars…”
In 2006, Saltwater
Fishing pumped
$2,443,801,000.00
Dollars into Florida’s
Economy!
Yes, that’s almost
$2.5 Billion in 2006!
We must protect our
Fishery & Economy.
Building Artificial
Reefs helps our
Fishery & Economy!Economic Impact of Saltwater
Fishing in the State of Florida
Saltwater Fishing has a Tremendous Impact
on the Health of Florida’s Economy.
We should be sure that Decisions
that have the potential to impact our
Fishery and Economy are
Based on Verifiable Data!This Data affects our Economy & Fishery!
Aug. 2007 - Proceedings of the Marine Recreational
Information Initiative Operations Team Workshop. “The National Research Council
Gulf States Marine Fishery Commission & Review of Recreational Fisheries
Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council. Survey Methods (NRC Review)
noted that the designs,
sampling strategies and
collection methods do not
provide adequate data for
management decisions.”
“Data do not provide the level
of resolution required by
managers and stock
assessment scientists and catch
and effort estimates may be
biased because sampling
designs are based on
unverified assumptions.”Data our Fishery Management used
to justify our Red Snapper Rules!
SEDAR 7 GULF OF MEXICO RED SNAPPER “The benchmarks are dependent on
the assumed effort allocation…”
“Note benchmarks have been
calculated and projections have
been done, assuming that
recruitment is equal to the average
base case estimates from 1984-
2003.”
“The RW noted that although there
were periods of time when there
was good sampling coverage from a
range of sources and fisheries, this
was generally not the rule for Red
Snapper (e.g., patchy age data with
missing years.)”Florida’s Red Snapper Regulation
Background Information
• In February 2008, The FFWCC, at a public meeting, listened to
testimonies of hundreds of Florida Residents.
• The bulk of the Testimonies stated that the Red Snapper Fishery
was healthy in our area and the potential devastating effect a
shortened season would have on our economy. (Video evidence of
the health of our Red Snapper Fishery was provided to the
Commission.)
• The FFWCC voted to keep the Current State Water Red Snapper
Season and to cut the Recreational bag limit by 50%.
• The FFWCC acted in the best interest of Florida and our Fishery by
considering the Best available Fishery Information to make their
well received decision.
Florida Fishermen Support Responsible Fishery ManagementFederal Red Snapper Regulation
Background Information
• Jan 2008 – Reduced Federal Red Snapper Season to
June 1st – Sep. 30th with no change to bag limits
• Feb 2008 - Florida Kept our Season Status Quo.
• Mar 2008 - announced another Federal Season
reduction: June 1st – Aug 5th
• Reduced Federal Season - amounts to only 19 weekend
days per year for the average working recreational
fisherman. With sea conditions and storm events, this
has the potential to deny access to Florida
Residents/taxpayers to the Federal Red Snapper Fishery.
• This decision has the appearance of a punitive measure
that fishermen know is based on Unverified, Outdated,
Assumption Based DataRegulations affect our Fishery, Economy and
our ability to enjoy our Heritage…Recreational Fishing
Taxpayers deserve
Accountable and Responsible
Fishery Management
funded with their money!In Conclusion
• Please Save Artificial Reef Building by keeping the steel
thickness requirement at 1/8th inch.
• Please Help to the Ease the Permitting Process in Florida &
encourage Permitting to help us “Build a Better Bottom.”
• Please Demand Responsible Fishery Mgt. to ensure Fair
Treatment of Recreational Fishermen and the health of our
Local, State and National Economy.
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