The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council will meet next week, September 14 to 18, in Charleston, South Carolina. Among the subjects to be discussed will be Amendment 17A, which addresses the management of the red snapper fishery long term, including possible closure of productive red snapper grounds along the Southeast Atlantic coast to all fishing for snapper and grouper species—to prevent accidental catches of red snapper. The meetings will include a public question and answer sessions with NOAA Fisheries Regional Adminstrator Dr. Roy Crabtree, and will also include two other public comment sessions.

The meetings once again promise to be well-attended and contentious, as the controversial interim closure to the red snapper fishery could be announced any day now.

The meetings will be held at the Charleston Marriot, 170 Lockwood Boulevard, Charleston, SC 29403. The hotel’s telephone is: (843) 723-3000 and the reservations number is: 800-968-3569.

Highlights of the Council’s agenda will include, within the Snapper Grouper Committee:

• Discussion of Snapper Grouper Amendment 17A, which addresses long-term measures to end overfishing for red snapper, including proposed area closures, establish Annual Catch Limits and other management measures. The Committee will review the draft document, consider alternatives and is scheduled to recommend approval for public hearings.

• Snapper Grouper Amendment 17B - Addresses measures to end overfishing as necessary and establish ACLs for 9 snapper grouper species currently listed as undergoing overfishing (snowy grouper, golden tilefish, speckled hind, warsaw grouper, red grouper, black grouper, black sea bass, gag, and vermilion snapper), etc. The Committee will review the draft document, consider alternatives, and is scheduled to recommend approval for public hearings.

• Snapper Grouper Amendment 18 - Includes alternatives to expand the management unit northward and other measures. The Committee will review management options and provide recommendations to staff for continued development.

The Council will also address issues within the Ecosystem-Based Management Committee, including:

• The Committee is scheduled to recommend final approval of Comprehensive Ecosystem-Based Amendment 1 (deepwater coral protection) and submission to the Secretary of Commerce. The Committee will also review options for the Comprehensive Ecosystem-Based Amendment 2 addressing coral management.

Public Comment sessions are as scheduled:

Informal Question / Answer Session - Wednesday, September 16th - 5:30 p.m. - Led by NOAA Fisheries Regional Administrator Dr. Roy Crabtree and Council Chairman Duane Harris.

Public Comment Session - Thursday, September 17th - 2:00 p.m. - Interested persons will be provided the opportunity to present oral or written statements relative to the meeting agenda.

Public Comment Session - Thursday, September 17th - 3:00 p.m. - Public comment on Comprehensive Ecosystem-Based Amendment 1 (Deepwater Coral protection).

For those not able to attend, the meetings will be broadcast live from Charleston via Web-based video feed. For more details on the meetings, including briefing books on the issues to be discussed, and also a link to the live video feed, visit the Council’s Web site, www.safmc.net .

The Council will meet for the last time in 2009 on December 6 to 11 in North Carolina. Those meetings will be held at the Sheraton Atlantic Beach, 2717 W. Fort Macon Road, Atlantic Beach, North Carolina. The phone is (800) 624-8875.

News of the meetings can also be read on FS.com and its Forum, under the conservation section threads.