Commercial harvest will reopen at 12:01 a.m. (local time) on January 1, 2014. During the closure, no commercial fisherman may fish for or keep cardinal or queen snapper in or from Puerto Rico federal waters.
NOAA Fisheries has determined based on 2010-2011 data, that the commercial annual catch limit for Snapper Unit 2 has been exceeded.
The US Caribbean federal waters around Puerto Rico consist of those waters extending from the nine nautical mile seaward boundary of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico out to 200 nautical miles offshore.
This action complies with regulations implemented under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, and is necessary to protect these resources.
