ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - A federal fisheries management council has passed a measure that would restrict the fishing of red snapper in the southeast Atlantic.

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council on Wednesday agreed to a red snapper ban in a 5,000-square-mile area off the coast of Georgia and northern Florida in water ranging from 98 to 240 feet. During debate on the measure, the size of the restricted area was reduced from 6,000-square-miles.

The goal of the ban is to restore the red snapper population, which proponents of the measure say has been overfished in recent years.

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