different from a National Park Service park. To establish Biscayne 

 National Monument, the State of Florida and the Federal government 

 agreed that fishing be allowed to continue in accordance with State 

 laws unless it was determined to be detrimental to the purposes for 

 which the "park" was established. If so determined, it should be 

 further regulated following consultation with the State. 



The enabling legislation reads, as follows: 



Sec. 4 "The Secretary of the Interior shall preserve and administer 

 the Biscayne National Monument in accordance with the pro- 

 visions of the Act of August 25, 1916 (39 Stat.535;16 U.S.C. 

 1-4), as amended and supplemented. The waters within the 

 Biscayne National Monument shall continue to be open to 

 fishing in conformity with the laws of the State of Florida 

 except as the Secretary, after consultation with appropriate 

 officials of said State, designates species for which, areas 

 and times within which, and methods by v/hich fishing is 

 prohibited, limited or otherwise regulated in the interest of 

 sound conservation or in order to achieve the purposes for 

 which the national monument is established." 



Commercial fishing and lobster-trapping are legal, as is sports fishing, 

 both by hook and line and by spear. Conch and lobster may also be taken 

 by divers, provided they are caught by hand or by hand-held net when in 

 season and provided legal limits are not exceeded. Tropical fish collec- 

 tion is not legal. 



Under the laws and regulations of the Park, identical to State laws, 

 the Superintendent of the Park grants permits. Four patrol boats 

 survey the area (20' - 28') manned by four Park Rangers with law 

 enforcement authority. The Florida Marine Patrol enforces in 

 State waters. Total park acreage is 104,000. 



At the present time, the Park management is conducting an extensive 

 fisheries management information program. Fishermen are interviewed 

 in the field out to the 60 ft. contour. Major species caught by 

 commercial fishermen are snapper, grouper, hogfish, grunts, dolphin and 

 sailfish. No fish traps are permitted. Some permits are granted for 

 stone crab and crawfish fishing. Aliens and non-residents must have 

 fishing licenses. Sportfishing must only be for edible fish. 

 The Park management is also currently experimenting with the use of 

 mooring buoys which mark an area for visitors and offer them an 

 opportunity to tie up to a buoy rather than anchoring in an area 



D-7 



