Oyster Legislation Passed – Our Vision Becomes Reality

Signed by Governor Abbott on May 27, 2023, Senate Bill 1032 will go into effect on September 1, 2023, providing Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) and stakeholders with the opportunity to develop a new(ish) program – The expansion and creation of on-bottom oyster leases. This bill is a common-sense approach that will provide stability, certainty, and increased business opportunities for the oyster industry, as well as substantial restoration opportunities for conservation organizations. As you may recall, we spelled the need for this out in our November 2021 Letter to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission.

Per the bill analysis, S.B. 1032 redefines a "natural oyster bed" to include the area for leases, especially in areas considered degraded. Previously, the only “areas under location” (leases) were 2,300 acres of mud bottom in Galveston Bay that were utilized for transplanting oysters from closed areas to open areas, allowing the oysters to depurate and become safe for human consumption prior to harvest. Over time, practices within these areas evolved as leaseholders began to “plant” these areas with new substrate, often limestone and river rock, to recruit wild spat and create next year’s harvest opportunity. This new language will allow TPWD to identify areas of the bay where oyster reefs used to exist and hard bottom remains while utilizing industry members and conservation organizations to revitalize these locations into thriving reefs.  The commercial leaseholders would have exclusive harvest rights within their lease and the restoration leases would be off limits to commercial harvest.

Oyster leases are clearly distinct from the pillage that occurs on public reefs every year, as the leaseholders are careful not to overwork their lease and they continually cultivate their beds with shell planting and strategic management practices. While oyster leases can’t compete with oyster mariculture when it comes to half-shell presentation and consumer preferences, they are the next best thing.

The significance of S.B. 1032 can’t be overstated, and we owe a significant debt of gratitude to Senator Lois Kolkhorst and Representative Todd Hunter for carrying this bill during this past 88^th Legislative Regular Session. We have stated time and time again that “we all want more oysters,” and this bill will see to it that our vision becomes a reality.

Key takeaways for Senate Bill 1032.

1) Ensures that there will be more areas of oyster reefs to harvest along the  Texas coast.

2) Allows for the expansion of the private lease (certificate of location) program in the oyster fishery.

3) Calls for TPWD to work with the Department of State Health Services and Texas General Land Office in considering these expansions.

4) Calls for TPWD to create program restoration guidelines for groups that want to help support oyster restoration.

5) Redefines a "natural oyster bed" to activate more areas where leases could be sited and aid in oyster resource recovery through additional consideration of leases in degraded areas.

6) Removes the need to transplant which will more effectively illustrate the reality of how oyster leases are being utilized.

In other news, the Gulf of Mexico Fisheries Management Council is set to meet August 14-17, 2023, in Austin at The Driskill. Please mark your calendars because we may be looking for participants to provide public comment on potential state surveys on private angler landings of Red Snapper and general observations on Amberjack.

Finally, regarding speckled trout, the temporary 3-fish bag limit with a 17-inch to 23-inch slot restriction will expire on September 1, 2023, and revert to the historic 5-fish bag limit with a 15-inch to 25-inch slot, and the allowance for 1 fish over 25-inches. While there is still some debate over whether the fishery has recovered, the expiration date was set in statute, therefore outside of an emergency ruling, any additional changes will be subject to the rule-making process.

Other CCA Happenings
By John Blaha

As we close out the first half of 2023, CCA Texas staff and volunteers have enjoyed a very successful first half of 2023.  Through the end of June, thirty-six local chapters have hosted their annual fundraising/membership banquets.  More than half of these events were sold out, and many have set record attendance and fundraising marks that continue the rich history of conservation of Texas’s coastal resources.  The North Texas Chapter became the 60^th local chapter and held their annual banquet on June 1, 2023.  The strength of the organization continues to be the grassroots efforts across the state.  Many thanks to our local chapter volunteers, sponsors, donors, and banquet attendees that come out to support the efforts of CCA Texas.

Habitat work continues to move forward along the coast.  CCA Texas funding was recently approved for a $200,000 funding request from Friends of RGV Reefs (FRGVR) to place materials in multiple sites including the new Causeway reef site out of South Padre Island and MU775 located between Packery Channel and Port Aransas.  Another $50,000 was approved for Phase II design for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s (TPWD) Newcomb Marsh Shoreline Protection project in Copano Bay.  These funds are part of the necessary community match for the CEPRA grant TPWD has applied for.  This grant will provide for the final engineering phase of the project and bring it to Phase III, the construction phase.  As part of the Texas Coastal Resiliency Plan and a Tier 1 project, CCA Texas looks forward to seeing this project move through this phase and into final construction phase.

For more information about CCA Texas, be sure to visit www.ccatexas.org and visit us on social media at https://www.facebook.com/CCATexas/, Instagram @cca_texas, and Twitter @CCA_Texas.