Fort Myers-based Captains For Clean Water has added Captain C.A. Richardson to the nonprofit’s board of directors.
Richardson has been a professional fishing guide and television personality for over 25 years. He has a strong presence in the outdoor community, and has used his platforms to amplify the organization's mission and spread awareness.
“I think it's my hallmark responsibility at this point in my career to do everything I can to support the fight for clean water,” Richardson says. “If we allow our waterways and estuaries to be diminished any further, there will be no future for Florida. And that's unacceptable.”
Richardson was born in Charleston, S.C., in 1965 and moved with his family to St. Petersburg two years later. During his childhood, he honed his angling skills on the beaches, piers, and inshore flats of Tampa Bay. As a teen, he spent hours casting artificial lures and bucktail jigs to trout, snook, tarpon, and redfish.
After much success in regional tournaments throughout the 1980s and ‘90s, Richardson joined the professional ranks competing on a national level in tournaments from North Carolina to Texas.
He said it was during those years that he learned a lot about localized techniques using light tackle, which shaped his guide business in Tampa Bay with his clientele who enjoy catching inshore species on artificial baits. In turn, his popular traveling fishing school, Flats Class, led to his career as a television fishing guide and Flats Class TV
“C.A. has been a leader in conservation and a devoted advocate for Captains For Clean Water’s efforts since the very beginning,” says Capt. Daniel Andrews, Captains For Clean Water’s director. “He's had an undeniable impact in the fight throughout the years so we're excited to bring him onto the board where he can continue to help us further our mission by educating and inspiring more passionate outdoorsmen and women to get involved in the fight for clean water. “
Richardson has already spoken in Tallahassee on behalf of fishing guides, testifying at a Florida State Senate committee last year during the fight against a controversial bill that pitted clean-water advocates against Big Sugar.
“I've never been one to stand back and watch as the waters I enjoy suffer, and neither should anyone else,” Richardson said. “I'm eager and excited to start on the board with Captains For Clean Water and take my commitment to this movement even further.”
Captains For Clean Water, which was founded in 2016 by Capt. Chris Wittman and Capt. Daniel Andrews, emerged from the local fishing community's frustration with water mismanagement in Florida. The group has grown in clout and membership and now is active in water quality and ecosystem conservation efforts throughout the Everglades.
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