Book Description
The proposed actions would set the 2013 quotas for commercial and recreational harvest of red snapper in the Gulf of Mexico. Based on the definition of overfishing adopted in the 2011 Generic Annual Catch Limits/Accountability Measures Amendment, the red snapper stock is not experiencing overfishing. Results from the red snapper update assessment in 2009, and projection updates in 2011 and 2012, indicate that the quotas can be increased consistent with the rebuilding target of biomass at maximum sustainable yield by 2032. Management measures considered in this framework action would adjust the red snapper acceptable biological catch (ABC) from 8.08 million pounds (mp) whole weight to 8.46 mp whole weight for 2013. The commercial and recreational sector quotas are based on the current 51% commercial (4.315 mp) and 49% recreational (4.145 mp) allocation of red snapper and would become the quotas for the respective sectors. This makes the resulting recreational and commercial quotas consistent with goals and objectives of the Council's red snapper rebuilding plan.