169 



to the economy of Franklin County. Employment, direct and indirect, 

 associated with other types of seafood — to the extent that the catch 

 is made in the bay or outside if the bay was the "nursery" — and much 

 of the employment based on tourism is attributable to adequate pollu- 

 tion control. 



As an initial step in determining the economic value of Apalachi- 

 cola Bay, value and qantity statistics have been assembled for finfish 

 and shellfish landings. 



Table IV.8.17 summarizes these figures for the 4 years, 1964 through 

 1967, for which complete data are available. Separate statistics are pre- 

 sented for oysters, shrimp, crabs, and finfish. Some shellfish are in- 

 cluded with the finfish but in no year do they amount to more than 

 1 percent of the total quantity or value figures for finfish. 



TABLE IV.3.17.— FISH AND SHELLFISH LANDINGS AND VALUES, APALACHICOLA BAY, 1964-67 



Source: Apalachicola Office, Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. 



The 4-year totals show a total catch of 16,353,600 pounds, valued at 

 $3,117,854, for Apalachicola Bay. During the period, there was a sig- 

 nificant increase in oyster landings and value accompanied, conversely, 

 by a large decrease in shrimp catch over the period. 



It should be recognized that the landings (fisherman's) value repre- 

 sented only a part of the total value of the fishing industry. For Frank- 

 lin County (Apalachicola) oysters for example, the final value aver- 

 aged four times the amount paid to the fisherman (and dependent upon 

 the final form in which the oysters were sold, this multiple could ex- 

 ceed seven times the fisherman's value) . 



In 1967, wholesale prices of oysters fluctuated between $4.50 and 



$6.50 (per gallon, shucked) for standard oysters and between $5.50 

 and $7.50 for select oysters. The markup to truckers ranged from $1.75 

 to $2.00 per gallon during the year averaging $1.50 per gallon to 

 dealers. All of the available information lends support to the conclu- 

 sion that the final value of the oyster industry is about four times the 

 fishermen's value. For 1967, this total amount would be $5,098,860. 



The total value of shrimp landings in Franklin County in 1967 was 

 $431,018. However, all the landings were not directly related to the 

 Apalachicola River and Bay. Significantly, the shrimp caught in the 

 gulf areas nearest the Apalachicola River and Bay are more closely 

 related to the estuary and it has been estimated by oceanographers that 

 approximately 90 percent of all of the shrimp caught in areas close to 

 the bay were originally inhabitants of the estuary which served as a 

 "nursery" for these shrimp, a reflection of the economic value of 

 estuaries which is not always recognized. 



