County urges FWC reopen bay to oyster harvest

In a show of solidarity, Franklin County commissioners joined with representatives of the oyster industry last week in Tallahassee as they urged members of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to reopen Apalachicola Bay to wild-caught harvesting next year following a five-year closure.

The Feb. 26 meeting marked the first step of discussions set to take place over the next nine months between stakeholders and state regulators as to what the rules will be that govern that reopening, rules that may well include a formula for limiting the number of oystermen who can legally harvest.

In his detailed opening report, complete with graphs that underscored his points, Devin Resko, the representative from FWC’s division of marine fisheries management who has worked closely with stakeholders over the last several years, said the bay has not fully bounced back since its collapse in 2013.

“This is not an Apalachicola issue, this is not a Florida issue, this is not a U.S. issue,” he said. “This is a global issue of dramatically declining oyster populations.

“Until recently, the Gulf was described as one of the last remaining areas in the world for which oyster conservation and sustainable wild fisheries were feasible,” Resko reported. “But in a 2023 meeting among U.S. Gulf states, all five reported severely depleted oyster resources despite states implementing increased regulations and restoration efforts. In Florida, many estuaries have lost 80–90% of their oyster reefs.”

With millions of dollars for re-shelling that are pouring in from National Fish and Wildlife Federation, as well as the state of Florida, which includes an additional $20 million in Gov. Ron DeSantis’ proposed budget, Resko said the volume of productive oyster reefs remains limited.

He said that based on mapping in 2022, only about 500 acres of such reefs remain, representing a 95% decline from the estimated 10,000 acres that once existed. On the existing 500 acres, densities are low and relatively few oysters are of legal harvest size, at least 3 inches, Resko said.

He said staff has proposed two overarching goals for the bay, to restore 2,000 acres of oyster habitat by 2032 and to reestablish the wild-harvest oyster fishery with a long-term cultching program, which means continued replenishment of reef material in harvested areas.

“At present, the majority of the bay’s oyster reefs cannot sustain harvest; however, there are restoration sites where reefs are regaining good numbers of legal-sized oysters,” Resko said.

He said staff recommends three short-term actions, which include a limited opening of the fishery, continued restoration to support ongoing recovery and to keep some areas closed to harvest.

Avoiding a detailed discussion of the details of what a reopening would entail, County Commissioner Ottice Amison, president of the Partnership for a Resilient Apalachicola Bay, said the Partnership, as it is commonly known, now has four active oystermen among its 15 voting members.

“We got them engaged and we ask you to keep us engaged and take our recommendations seriously, so everyone feels they’re a part of it,” he said. “We’re looking at data and we feel that is the correct approach. We stress any information before November’s decision be taken with new refresher data.

“We’re optimistic about getting this bay back to its once glory and we feel FWC has the opportunity to knock it out of the park,” Amison said.

Partnership member Shannon Hartsfield, an oysterman who has long been active in advising regulators as a member of the Seafood Management and Assistant Resource and Recovery Team (SMARRT) group, offered to take FWC members out on the water for a first-hand look.

“It’s looking really good but we have a long way to go,” he said.

County Commission Chairman Ricky Jones reminded the board of the December 2020 discussion that included hope for a wide-scale restoration over the course of five years.

“There’s now only 100 acres restored in the bay,” he said. “Currently we are 92 percent tourism. We need that diversity of income back, we need commercial fishermen back on the water.

“Please don’t take it as our voice,” Jones said. “Take it as their voice.”

Commissioner Cheryl Sanders said she had been surprised to learn in 2021, during a single term within her nearly 24 years in office when she was not a commissioner, that the bay was to be closed for five years.

She said she was told that no economic impact study had been done. “The same thing is going to happen here if an unforeseen thing comes up and you all decide it doesn’t have to be open,” Sanders said. “We need that bay open; anything you all can do would be good. It’s like when you farm that land. You got to work those waters. These oysters are coming back and they need to be worked and they need to be harvested.”

Commissioner Anthony Crooms likened the impact of the bay closure to the shutdown of the paper mill some years back in Port St. Joe.

“We’re not asking for it to be reopened without rules,” he said. “We ask you to consider all of this as you make a decision to reopen our bay.”

Jerald Beckham, president of the Cedar Key Oystermen’s Association, spoke in support of reopening the bay, and asked for FWC’s support in delivering $2 million in a BP claim from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill that he said is stuck in “government procurement.”

Wayne Williams and Cheryl Carr spoke on behalf of the Seafood Work And Watermans Association, and stopped short of taking issue with limited entry, a key concern of the association.

“We must be sure not to make permanent changes for temporary problems.” Williams said. “We need to be flexible as resources fluctuate. Please keep us involved, we want a good working relationship with state agencies.”

Carr told how families have been forced to leave the area as a consequence of long term closure. “Prolonged closure disrupts this balance, both for the economy and the habitat,” she said. “Continued closure threatens to erase this heritage.”

Franklin County resident Julie Boisseau urged reopening, and said she had questions ever since she began following the restoration project in summer 2023.

“What is the end goal of this project? Is it about securing more funding? Is that why the recovery reports are always so dire?” she asked. “Additionally, the attitude to involving and listening to the local wild oyster workers has been dismissive and condescending throughout.”

She urged FWC to work with the Seafood Work and Watermans Association on their oyster management and restoration plan. She said her questions to FWC, state legislators and DeSantis, on issues ranging as to how monies have been spent and what data has been reviewed, have gone unanswered

“I would also like to recommend that this committee appoints an independent board to review all of the FWC data and present it to the public before making this monumental decision that will have a huge impact on our community for years to come,” she said.

Last to speak was Adrianne Johnson, director of the Florida Shellfish Aquaculture Association, which represents over 350 oyster and clam farmers across the state, mostly in Franklin and Wakulla counties.

“We don’t see it as either-or but a both-and,” she said. ”We have fast growing oysters. We are uniquely positioned to be a leader in the country. Our farmers would like to be a part of the solution.”

FWC Chairman Rodney Barreto asked staff to schedule an upcoming meeting in Apalachicola. “We’re long overdue,” he said. “Years ago we did several meetings, when it was thriving.”