CMR Lowers Speck Size to 13 Inches: Most of Jackson County Will Keep 14-Inch Limit
By Al Jones, The Sun Herald, Biloxi, Miss.
Dec. 19–BILOXI — In an unexpected twist, the Mississippi Commission on Marine Resources adopted a measure Tuesday to lower the minimum size limit on speckled trout.
The vote came after the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources held public hearings on the matter and recommended the minimum limit of 14 inches remain intact. The recommendation came after the majority of the fishermen voiced opinions at the meetings against a lower size.
“We had the vote on the spotted sea trout and the motion was made for the Mississippi recreational size limit to change from 14 inches to 13 inches,” said Lauren Thompson, public relations director for the DMR. “It will go into effect 60 days from Dec. 18.”
The motion passed by a 3-1 vote. One of the five CMR members was not in attendance. Commissioner Richard Gollott made the motion. Recreational representative Shelby Drummond was the lone vote against it.
The lower limit, however, doesn’t apply to the entire portion of the three coastal counties. Recreational anglers in Hancock County will be permitted to keep 13-inch trout along with those in Harrison County and a small part of Jackson County.
“The dividing line is the east channel of Biloxi that runs from Dog Key Pass to channel marker No. 9 and due north to Belle Fontaine Beach. Basically, the line is from the Louisiana-Mississippi state line to the east channel,” Thompson said.
That means the DMR Marine Patrol will have to enforce two different size limits for anglers fishing Horn and Ship islands as well as Fort Bayou in Jackson County and Biloxi’s Big Lake.
“The second motion made today by Commissioner Gollott at the Commission on Marine Resources meeting,” said Thompson, “was ‘a motion that we delay the implementation of the 13-inch trout for 60 days until we can send my motion out for public hearing to lower the creel (bag) limit to 10 on anyone wishing to keep a 13-inch trout in the affected areas of Hancock, Harrison and a small portion of Jackson County.’ “
If that were to pass, anglers fishing in Gautier, Pascagoula and Horn Island can keep 15 fish if the motion is passed while those back to the west will be allowed 10 fish per person.
F.J. Eicke of the Mississippi Coastal Conservation Association said “the 14-inch minimum size for spotted sea trout establishes a discriminatory policy impacting Jackson County anglers, and asks our Marine Enforcement Officers to enforce an unenforceable regulation.”
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Copyright (c) 2007, The Sun Herald, Biloxi, Miss.
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