FFI Gulf Coast Council

An urgent reminder that this Friday is the deadline for responses to the proposed Notice of Intent (NOI) to reduce the buffer zone for industrial harvest of menhaden (pogies) from 1/2 mile to 1/4 mile.  Please read the following summary, then email your thoughts to: jadriance@wlf.la.gov

What’s at stake

While menhaden harvest has been around in Louisiana for many decades, in the past 20 years the harvest numbers have increased by over 40 percent. Louisiana is the ONLY Gulf state that doesn’t have harvest quotas or bans, and a buffer zone of less than one mile. In fact, Louisiana accounts for nearly 90 percent of the nation’s menhaden harvest!  This has resulted in a decline of offshore menhaden both in numbers and average size. Despite the industry’s claims that “pogies are overrated as a forage species”, the truth is that, for numerous species, menhaden is their prime forage. We’ve seen a serious decline in the numbers of king mackeral, Spanish mackeral and other pelagic fish that depend on menhaden.

The industry claims that the “science” shows that the bycatch of breeding size red drum (over 30,000 killed each year) and mature speckled trout (240,000 killed each year), will not increase if the current buffer zone is moved inland from a measly 1/2 mile to a 1/4 mile. That’s not necessarily true either – it depends on the water depth.  Regardless, it will NOT decrease the amount of bycatch – which is what our objective is.

* The official position of Fly Fishers International and the FFI Gulf Coast Council is that there needs to be a harvest quota of menhaden for Louisiana, much less than the current 1.3 billion pounds per year.   This would protect the forage base as well as greatly reduce the amount of bycatch. *

In the meantime, this NOI must be defeated or we’ll have even higher numbers of redfish and speckled trout killed in sets.

What you can do

• Ask the Commission to OPPOSE this NOI to reduce the harvest buffer zone. Send the comments to jadriance@wlf.la.gov.   If you submitted comments prior to January 5th, you must resubmit them again.
• Please contact your state legislators, and/or the members of the Legislative Natural Resources Committee. Here is a directory to contact legislators.
  https://www.legis.la.gov/legis/Bios.aspx?cid=H
• If possible, attend the February 5th LWF Commission meeting at LDWF Headquarters in Baton Rouge.

Thank you kindly for your patience and persistence in protecting our marine fisheries!

Last Thursday was a very disappointing day at LDWF headquarters in Baton Rouge, as members of the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission (LWFC) voted 4 to 3 in support of a Notice of Intent (NOI) to reduce the commercial menhaden harvest buffer zone from 1/2-mile to 1/4 mile in most areas along the coast.

This meeting took place just one year after the current regulations of a 1/2 mile coastwide buffer were established as a compromise between conservationists and industry representatives. At the time, it appeared almost certain a one-mile buffer would be set, but Governor Jeff Landry insisted that there be some settlement.

Now the industry has broken it’s agreement.

In testimony before the LWFC, industry leaders argued using data from a year-long bycatch study done by LGL Group, that reducing the buffer would not result in additional bycatch of red drum and black drum.

LGL President Scott Raborn was asked to speak first and answer several questions. During the questioning by LWFC Chairman Kevin Segura, it was vague whether moving the buffer would result in greater bycatch. However, Dr. Raborn was not allowed to finish his testimony which shows that, in those areas where the 1/2 mile buffer was deeper than 22 feet, there WOULD be an increase in bycatch by moving the buffer closer.

The industry reps continued their arguments claiming:

• the buffer was impacting their ability to catch pogies
• that menhaden is overrated as a forage species,
• that pelagic fish will gravitate towards other prey such as shrimp and crabs if menhaden are reduced in their area
• that the menhaden harvest in Louisiana reduces the total biomass of menhaden in the Gulf of Mexico by only 3 percent

Conservation advocates – including State Representative and coastal scientist Joe Orgeron, Chris Macaluso of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership and Glen Cormier of the FFI Gulf Coast Council – tore apart each of these arguments in short order.  One example: while it may be true that the menhaden catch in Louisiana is only 3 percent of the Gulf biomass, the Gulf is an awfully big area – and all of it’s waters outside Louisiana are restricted or banned for pogy harvest.  As a percentage of Louisiana-only biomass, it’s nearly 30 percent.  See what they did there?

Also joining in dissecting this misinformation – as well as providing supporting their own scientific facts were representatives of CCA Louisiana, American Saltwater Guides Association, Louisiana Wildlife Federation, Center for Sportfishing Policy, and several others.

Overall, the opponents in attendance and number of speakers in opposition was 3-to-1 to the commercial industry. And this is even more impressive when considering that an overwhelming number of guides were unable to attend since October and November are their busiest times of the year. In addition, over 800 emails and letters were sent to the Commission opposing this NOI.

Despite the overwhelming opposition and factual scientific arguments by conservation representatives, the Commission voted as many expected – right along commercial / sport lines. With the 3-3 tie, Chairman Segura cast the deciding vote in favor of the NOI.

Here’s what happens next…

The Notice of Intent will be published, and once so, there’s a public comment period that opens on December 19th and concludes on January 23rd. It then goes to the Legislative Oversight Committee for review, and if no action is taken, it would become official on March 20, 2026.

While the comments period is certainly an opportunity to express our displeasure with the NOI, it’s our opinion that further comments will do little the votes on the Commission. As stated, these votes were cast along partisan lines and there’s little expectation that will change.

Therefore, all effort must be made to persuade members of the House and Senate Natural Resources Committees. These members make up the Legislative Oversight Committee that can veto the NOI.

To put into football terminology, yesterday was like halftime and we’re in a hole. But we still have a chance to pull out a victory if we continue our push! Stay tuned for more details to come.