On the eve of a U. S. Senate hearing in Franklin County, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker on Monday declared a commercial fishery failure for the oyster fishery in Apalachicola Bay.

Gov. Rick Scott requested the declaration in September 2012 because the fishery was near collapse. A May 2013 state report sent last week to federal officials blames lack of fresh water flowing from federal reservoirs in Georgia and Alabama.

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