The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) announced today the reopening of the recreational bay scallop harvest in the Pasco Zone following a temporary closure. The zone will be open from August 28 through September 24, 2024. This area includes all state waters south of the Hernando-Pasco county line and north of the Anclote Key Lighthouse in northern Pinellas County, encompassing the Anclote River.
“We appreciate the community’s patience with the closure while we carefully monitored toxin levels in the Pasco Zone. Public safety is our top priority, and we wanted to ensure that levels dropped below the safety threshold before we considered reopening the season. We are excited to give back all the season days ahead of Labor Day weekend and encourage you and your family to enjoy Florida’s beautiful outdoors,” said FWC Executive Director Roger Young.
The FWC continues to monitor scallop and water samples to ensure public safety. Continuous testing during the precautionary closure showed that both Pyrodinium bahamense algae and its toxin, saxitoxin, have returned to safe levels based on thresholds established by the National Shellfish Sanitation Program. As a precaution, it is recommended that only scallop muscle be consumed after reopening, avoiding roe or whole scallops.
For more information about securing a saltwater recreational fishing license, visit GoOutdoorsFlorida.com. Additional details can be found at MyFWC.com/Scallops and in FWC's factsheet on Pyrodinium.