1 ECONOMIC ACTIVITY ASSOCIATED WITH COMMERCIAL FISHING ALONG THE TEXAS GULF COAST Joni S. Charles, PhD Contracted through the River Systems Institute Texas State University – San Marcos For the National Wildlife Federation February 2005 Commercial Fishing Full Final Report Document Printed: 11/1/2018 Document Date: January 21, 2005 2 Introduction This report focuses on estimating the economic activity specifically associated with commercial fishing in Sabine Lake/Sabine-Neches Estuary, Galveston Bay/Trinity-San Jacinto Estuary, Matagorda Bay/Lavaca-Colorado Estuary, San Antonio Bay/Guadalupe Estuary, Aransas Bay/Mission-Aransas Estuary, Corpus Christi Bay/Nueces Estuary, Baffin Bay/Upper Laguna Madre Estuary, and South Bay/Lower Laguna Madre Estuary. Each bay/estuary area will define a separate geographic region of study comprised of one or more counties. Commercial fishing, therefore, refers to bay (inshore) fishing only. The results show the ex-vessel value of finfish, shellfish and shrimp landings in each of these regions, and the impact this spending had on the economy in terms of earnings, employment and sales output. Estimates of the direct impacts associated with ex-vessel values were produced using IMPLAN, an input-output of the Texas economy developed by the Minnesota IMPLAN Group. The input data was obtained from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) (Culbertson 2004). Commercial fishing impacts are provided in terms of direct expenditure, sales output, income, and employment. These estimates are reported by category of expenditure. A description of IMPLAN is included in Appendix C. Indirect and Induced (Secondary) impacts are generated from the direct impacts calculated by IMPLAN. Indirect impacts represent purchases made by industries from their suppliers. Induced impacts represent spending by employees who earn income within the industry. Section A provides a brief overview of the study area and geography of the bay system. Section B briefly describes commercial fishing in the study area. Section C summarizes the direct impact of commercial fishing in each of the Bay areas. Section D will provide estimates of economic activity of each region of study - regional direct and indirect employment, as well as direct and indirect income generated by commercial fishing. Appendix A contains definitions of words and terms used in this study. Appendix B provides details of data collection, methods used to calculate expenditures, adjustments made to the data, assumptions and discusses limitations of the model. Appendix C explains the model used to estimate economic activity. Commercial Fishing Full Final Report Document Printed: 11/1/2018 Document Date: January 21, 2005 3 A. Study Area and Geography of the Bay System1 Figure 1 1 See http://www.glo.state.tx.us/coastal/cmpdoc/jpegs/guidance-czb- sm.jpg for maps of Texas coastal zones. Commercial Fishing Full Final Report Document Printed: 11/1/2018 Document Date: January 21, 2005 4 Gulf coast estuaries and bays, fed by freshwater inflows, contain coastal wetlands which are home to 95% of the recreational and commercially important fish species found in the Gulf of Mexico.’ (Cook 2002) These wetlands are also the spawning ground of many species of shrimp. Commercial fishing of these species provides coastal residents with employment and income. 11 out of 15 of Texas major rivers have historically provided freshwater to the coast, but this is increasingly being threatened by demands for Commercial Fishing Full Final Report Document Printed: 11/1/2018 Document Date: January 21, 2005 5 freshwater by agricultural, industrial and municipal interests. Figure 1 shows the study area by county where commercial fishing activities take place. Study area will be defined in this study as the area where both the activity and the economic activity takes place. Figure 2 shows the location of each bay. Table 1 shows the counties which are the primary beneficiaries of the sales, employment, and income from activities in the bays and estuaries fed by freshwater inflows. Bay regions may overlap more than one county boundary to define the economic region of interest to this study. Table 1: Texas Bays, Estuaries and County Breakdown of Study Area Bay/Estuary Counties South Bay/Lower Laguna Madre Estuary + ½ Kenedy (Port Mansfield Area) Cameron (Hidalgo) Willacy Baffin Bay/Upper Laguna Madre Estuary Kenedy (- ½ Kenedy Baffin Area) Kleberg Corpus Christi Bay/Nueces Estuary Nueces San Patricio Aransas (½ Aransas) Aransas Bay/Mission-Aransas Estuary ( 2/3 Refugio) Aransas San Patricio San Antonio Bay/Guadalupe Estuary ( 1/3 Refugio) Calhoun (½ Aransas) (Victoria) Matagorda Bay/Lavaca-Colorado Estuary (Jackson) Matagorda Calhoun Victoria Galveston Bay and the Trinity-San Jacinto Estuary Galveston Brazoria Harris (Liberty) Chambers Sabine Lake and the Sabine-Neches Estuary Orange Jefferson Commercial Fishing Full Final Report Document Printed: 11/1/2018 Document Date: January 21, 2005 6 Figure 3 shows the major rivers which provide the freshwater sources for the bays and estuaries of the Gulf. Figure 3 Commercial Fishing Full Final Report Document Printed: 11/1/2018 Document Date: January 21, 2005 7 B. About Commercial Fishing2 in Texas There are probably more than 600 species of Texas marine fishes, counting all habitats from the estuaries to the ocean depths of the abyssal zone 150 miles off the barrier islands. This is more than all the different kinds of Texas freshwater fishes, reptiles, amphibians, and mammals put together. At least 120 families of marine fishes live along the Texas coast. Getting an exact count is difficult because there are few effective barriers in the ocean, and it is large and difficult to explore; secretive species therefore often go unnoticed (Anderson and Ditton 2004). The commercial seafood referred to in this study are comprised of finfish, shellfish, and shrimp. The source for the data used in this report, unless specified otherwise, is Trends in Texas Commercial Fishery Landings, 1981-2001, published by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department – Coastal Fisheries Division (Culbertson 2004). Finfish species included in the data are black drum, yellowfin tuna, grouper, and flounder. Shellfish include blue crab, and Eastern oyster. Shrimp species which are used for eating are brown shrimp, pink shrimp and white shrimp. Bait shrimp data is also commercially harvested in the Gulf Coast, but not reported in this study3. Commercial fishing supports many communities along the Gulf Coast, providing employment, income, and revenue from sales. Freshwater inflows mix with saltwater in wetland areas of estuaries to provide the appropriate salinity where a number of finfish and shellfish species can find shelter, food, spawning and nursery grounds. The availability of shrimp, in particular, depends on the amount of vegetated area provided by wetlands. The health of the estuarine ecosystem and the economies of surrounding counties depend on careful water use and water management policies which preserve the flow of freshwater, a life cycle, and a food chain which ends with the harvesting of seafood for consumption (Stedman and Hanson 1991) Commercial fishermen sell to licensed seafood and bait dealers. The dealers must fill out a report (Monthly Aquatic Products Report) each month. This report details where the fishing activity takes place, the total weight and the price paid for the species of finfish, shellfish, or crab (Culbertson 2004). The number of fishermen is estimated by the number of commercial saltwater fishermen non-resident and resident licenses sold in Texas 1981-2001. It was assumed for this study that residents travel less than 112 miles (or less than 90 minutes) to fish and non-residents travel more than 112 miles (more than 90 minutes). 2 Saltwater fishing 3 Data available for 1994 – 2001 only, or reported as offshore (Gulf of Mexico). Commercial Fishing Full Final Report Document Printed: 11/1/2018 Document Date: January 21, 2005 8 C. Initial Spending Total earnings from commercial fishing activity are measured by the monies paid to commercial fishermen, 16 years or older, from the sale of their fish directly to commercial seafood and bait dealers. These revenues come from the value of the total fish caught and landed (unloaded) in the bay region (ex-vessel value). Ex-vessel value can be obtained directly from the Culbertson report (Culbertson 2004). Commercial fishing effort which occurs outside of an immediate bay, but landed in a bay of interest may also have an economic impact on surrounding counties. 1. Summary of Ex-Vessel Values Total value of commercial fishing in each Bay area was estimated using inshore data from Robinson, et al. (Culbertson 2004) and offshore data from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)4. This data was used to estimate the total value of inshore finfish, shellfish, and shrimp. The following is a summary of all the landings and their values in the Bay region of Texas adjusted to 2003 dollars5. Table 1: Summary of Ex-Vessel Values of Finfish, Shellfish, and Shrimp, adjusted to 2003 dollars, by Bay Bay Inshore Finfish Inshore Inshore Shellfish Shrimp Sabine Lake $25, 664 692,297 $55,471 Galveston Bay $205,152 8,953,512 $7,930,823 Matagorda Bay $47,152 932,579 $6,451,662 San Antonio Bay $171,599 1,564,157 $2,112,515 Aransas Bay $227,739 714,095 $3,924,491 Corpus Christi Bay $366,964 140,235 $2,341,033 Upper Laguna Madre Bay $756,054 $27,047 $158,915 Lower Laguna Madre Bay $395,584 $83,162 0 4 Courtesy of Lance Robinson, TPWD. 5 Adjusted using the PPI for unprocessed finfish and shellfish (BLS 2002). Commercial Fishing Full Final Report Document Printed: 11/1/2018 Document Date: January 21, 2005 9 Figure 1: Summary of Ex-Vessel Values of Finfish, Shellfish, and Shrimp, (1981- 2001 average in 2003 dollars), by Bay Total Value of Commercial Fishing $10,000,000 $1,000,000 Inshore Finfish and Shellfish Inshore Shrimp $100,000 $10,000 Sabine Lake Aransas Bay Galveston BayMatagorda Bay San Antonio Bay Corpus Christi Bay Upper LagunaLower Madre Laguna Bay Madre Bay 2.