The City of Apalachicola sold 4 more oyster harvesting licenses this year than last

The City of Apalachicola sold 4 more oyster harvesting licenses this year than last – ending a 10 year downward trend, but not by much.

304 oyster harvesting licenses were sold through June the 30th this year – that’s up from 300 last year, which remains the lowest number of license sales since the state began requiring the licenses.

It is well below the 467 sold in 2018 and the 796 sold the year before that.

The highest number of licenses ever sold was in 2010 – the year of the BP oil spill – when nearly 1900 licenses were purchased – the sales period that year was extended by two months because of the oil spill.

The City of Apalachicola took over oyster license sales in 2018 – before then it was handled by the Department of Agriculture.

And while there were 304 oyster licenses sold this year, that doesn’t mean that there are that many oystermen actively working.  

Some people buy the 100 dollar licenses every year as insurance against future unemployment.

http://live.oysterradio.com/