1985 The Florida Conservation Association (FCA) becomes the fifth state chapter of the Coastal Conservation Association.
1986 FCA successfully intervenes in lawsuits filed by commercial interests opposing Spanish mackerel recovery plans. CCA National is successful in stopping purse seining of spawning redfish in the Gulf of Mexico.
1987 FCA merges with the Everglades Protection Association. FCA joins with CCA in efforts to bring about a management plan to protect billfish from longliners.
1988 FCA wins a four year battle to achieve gamefish status for Florida's depleted redfish stocks. Redfish becomes the first species since 1957 to be removed from Florida's market. U.S. Secretary of Commerce signs FCA-supported management plan for billfish, marking the first time federal authorities have declared a gamefish in federal waters.
1989 FCA achieves major legislative victory establishing the first recreational saltwater fishing license in Florida with license revenues protected and directed to marine fisheries management, research and law enforcement.
Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council adopts strong conservation measures for red snapper, grouper, goliath grouper, black sea bass, and amberjack.
1990 FCA plays a major role as the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council bans drift gill nets.
1991 FCA is instrumental in persuading the South Atlantic Council to ban fish traps from Florida's east coast federal waters.
1992 The Save our Sealife Committee (S.O.S.) is formed to initiate a constitutional amendment petition drive to limit marine net fishing in Florida state waters. FCA members take the lead in collecting a national record 201,000 petitions in a single day.
1993 FCA legal action results in the establishment of a purse seine netting sanctuary in the entire Tampa Bay coastal region to protect and restore commercially-devastated forage fish stocks.
1994 More than 550,000 petitions are collected to put the S.O.S. Amendment on the Florida state ballot. The Amendment is approved by Florida's voters by a 72 percent margin.
1995 FCA intervenes in four lawsuits to help the State of Florida defend the S.O.S. Amendment from commercial industry lawsuits. FCA leads the fight against the introduction of damaging bottom-dragging trawls for finfish leading to a rule banning the gear. Florida's Governor and Cabinet approve an FCA-backed seatrout restoration plan that limits commercial fishing and implements more restrictive recreational limits.
1996 As a result of an FCA Special Report on poaching, the legislature passes a bill increasing fines and penalties and closing several loopholes in fishery laws. FCA also focuses statewide attention on the "tarp scam nets," and successfully supports a law mandating by-catch reduction devices on all shrimp trawls in the N.E. Florida region. The FCA board votes to change the organization's name from "Florida Conservation Association" to "Coastal Conservation Association Florida."
1997 With strong CCA Florida backing, the Florida legislature enacts a major fishery conservation act that codifies the MFC's authority to enforce the net ban, outlaws tarp "scam" nets, and imposes tougher penalties on repeat violators. The state and CCA Florida also win a major three-year legal battle when the Florida Supreme Court rejects commercial industry arguments and finds the net ban constitutional.
1998 CCA enters into a campaign to alert the public and state government to the problem of widespread illegal netting activities leading to passage of major anti-poaching legislation. At the urging of conservation organizations, including CCA Florida, the Constitution Revision adopts a revision to unify the fish and wildlife agencies into a more effective and independent Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The amendment passes with a 72 percent margin.
A five-year effort ends successfully when Florida becomes the first state bordering the Gulf of Mexico to mandate the use of by-catch reduction devices in shrimp trawls in all state waters.
1999 CCA Florida works with the South Atlantic Council to get specific recommendations incorporated in the Council's proposed management plan for dolphin and wahoo.
CCA Florida's request for an investigation into rising numbers of commercially-harvested pompano reveals large-scale illegal netting. CCA Florida also helps to guide the FWC hatchery program toward a major redfish stocking project in Tampa Bay.
2000 CCA National takes the lead in advocating congressional legislation to prohibit drift longlines off Florida, Georgia and South Carolina and establish large time/area closures in the Gulf. Ultimately, NMFS implements closed areas off Florida and Georgia that are virtually identical to the federal legislation.
2001 CCA intervenes in a federal lawsuit by commercial interests that attempts to stop time and area longline closures.
CCA Florida is instrumental during the Legislative session in acquiring $435,000 for the FWC saltwater hatchery and two artificial reef budget items totaling $1.5 million. The redfish stocking program releases the one millionth fingerling in Tampa Bay.
As a result of CCA research, FWC staff begin identifying actions to resolve illegal netting problems.
CCA Florida becomes involved in manatee protection plans because of closed-door negotiations over settlement of a lawsuit filed by environmental and animal welfare groups. The FWC incorporates several CCA amendments. CCA Florida produces the Fraser Report, "Manatees in Florida: 2001.”
CCA documents illegal netting of pompano in state waters resulting in the adoption of new conservation measures by the FWC. Measures based on CCA recommendations are also adopted for west coast snook.
The FWC adopts new statewide cobia regulations which, with the exception of a two-per-person commercial limit, are the same as the CCA Florida recommendations. At CCA Florida's urging, the FWC endorses the Gulf Council's red grouper plan to prohibit the use of bottom longlines out to 50 fathoms.
CCA Florida successfully mobilizes public opposition to the South Atlantic Council's proposed list of 40 new no-fishing zones, 19 of which are proposed for Florida's east coast. The number of proposed areas off Florida is reduced to four which would only be designated for protection of deepwater snapper/grouper spawning areas.
2002 CCA Florida works to block a Gulf Council proposal to prohibit recreational harvest of all grouper for four months as part of a red grouper recovery plan.
CCA Florida helps pass amendments to state manatee legislation that requires the FWC to establish “measurable biological goals” for manatees and to use local review panels when developing regulations.
At CCA’s urging, the FWC completes a “Preliminary Biological Status Review” which finds no evidence that manatee populations have declined over the past 45 years. The report also recommends that the species status should be re-classified from “Endangered” to “Threatened.”
CCA successfully opposes expansion of commercial shrimp trawling into recreational shrimping and fishing areas in the St. Johns River that had been closed to trawling for 20 years.
2003 CCA Florida releases a special report, Failures and Exploitation Bias in Federal Fishery Management Programs — Recommendations for Systemic Changes.
An FWC assessment of inshore waters, done at CCA’s request, reveals that more than one quarter of a million acres are already in manatee protection zones. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service appoints a CCA Florida representative to the Steering Committee of the Florida Manatee Recovery Team.
During the Legislative session, CCA works to acquire $600,000 for Florida’s artificial reef program and an additional $194,000 for shallow-water gag grouper reefs.
At CCA’s urging, the FWC adopts measures against illegal netting by defining transit laws and banning the use of “toy boats” that allowed the use of multiple nets.
CCA exposes questionable techniques in a NMFS study of surface trolling in deep water grouper protection areas in the northern Gulf. A compromise is reached that allows trolling in areas where bottom fishing is closed.
Habitat restoration programs plant 20,000 mangroves in the Indian River Lagoon and places 40 tons of oyster shells to create bars in Tampa Bay.
A CCA-supported sargassum protection plan passes after six years of deliberations by federal councils and NMFS.
2004 With strong CCA backing, a new law increases the penalty for major net ban violations from a misdemeanor to a felony.
The First District Court of Appeal in Tallahassee upholds a legal decision by the FWC which asserted that a “hybrid” commercial net was not legal. CCA Florida intervened in the lawsuit.
CCA national intervenes in a lawsuit seeking to create no-fishing zones in two grouper spawning preserves in the northern Gulf despite a compromise between NMFS and CCA that allows surface trolling while protecting grouper stocks.
CCA Florida representatives work with the Biscayne National Park Fishery Working Group to make recommendations on proposed no-entry and no-fishing zones in Biscayne Bay.
CCA Florida urges the FWC to establish stronger protection for large permit which are vulnerable when aggregated on wrecks .
Research published by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission indicates that no-fishing zones may not fulfill expectations as replenishment zones.
2005 Based on questionable data, NMFS enacts an interim rule reducing the bag limit of all Gulf grouper and closing the Gulf to recreational grouper fishing for two months. CCA Florida files a lawsuit challenging NMFS’s authority to use an interim rule to stop fishing for all grouper species. In a huge win for saltwater anglers, the U.S. District Court rules in favor of CCA, stopping the two-month closure and restoring the bag limit.
CCA turns back a plan by NMFS to issue “research” permits to longline boats to fish in areas where the gear is banned. The areas off Florida's East coast and in the Gulf have been closed to commercial swordfish longlining for several years resulting in a dramatic recovery of sailfish, swordfish, dolphin and wahoo.
CCA Florida stops legislation that would have authorized the use of 500-square-foot gill nets. A related attempt to put a constitutional amendment on the 2006 ballot to have the independent constitutional authority of the FWC removed is also stopped.
At CCA’s urging, the FWC passes a rule that limits the number of large permit over 20 inches that may be possessed aboard a vessel, thus preventing substantial numbers of large permit from being taken when the fish are aggregated over wrecks.
CCA files legal action petitioning the U.S. Secretary of Commerce to stop the overfishing of Gulf red snapper by shrimp trawls. The recovery goals to reduce the directed commercial and recreational take of red snapper have been achieved through size, bag and season limits; however, the trawl damage continues to undermine the recovery plan.
Although more than 200 square miles of no-fishing zones have been enacted around the Dry Tortugas National Park, another attempt is made to close another 46 square miles to all fishing--even catch and release. A joint federal/state management plan is approved. However, at CCA’s urging, the Florida Cabinet withholds approval of the fisheries plan until recommendations can be provided by the FWC, which has exclusive authority over fishing in the area designated for closure.
2006 CCA Florida was able to convince FWC after five years to reclassify Manatees. FWC staff recommended moving manatees from endangered to threatened. This helped keep open many recreational fishing areas that were proposed to be closed.
CCA Florida helps the FWC increase snook spawning potential ratio of 40%. CCA Florida recommends raising the lower end of the current slot size by one inch. The FWC adopts these recommendations unanimously.
2007 CCA files lawsuit against the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) in forcing action to greatly reduce the damage by shrimp trawlers. The federal judges’ ruling in support of CCA directs NMFS to immediately address their failure to regulate the damage to Gulf red snapper caused by shrimp trawls.
CCA Florida joins with numerous state and local angling groups and organizations to oppose proposed Everglades National Park general management plan alternatives which would dramatically restrict boating and angler access in the Park.
CCA Florida helps to reject another attempt by swordfish longliners to move back into areas along Florida’s east coast.
Florida Supreme Court rules against netting interests. CCA Florida helps to defend the FWC netting rule when efforts from netters to try and use seine nets with any size mesh, which would essentially be a gill net, are challenged.
CCA Florida works successfully with FWC to promote and adopt proactive snook management measures which will achieve the 40% spawning potential ration resource protection goal.
At the urging of CCA Florida, the FWC Commissioners established a new process to have the Commission become active in federal fishery issues and establish policies and recommendations for major fisheries issues.
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