The city of Orange Beach has stopped issuing commercial vessel licenses and other maritime businesses temporarily, in an effort to figure out how to handle the influx of new vessels on the water caused in part by the city’s growth.

“We’re trying to sort out how much our marine and environmental resources can tolerate with charter fishing, dolphin cruises and the list goes on and on,” Orange Beach Mayor Tony Kennon told AL.com reporter John Sharp. “We’re trying to sort through all of that since we’ve become popular, we’ve had an unbelievable number of requests for about every water [related business] you can imagine.”

In June, the Orange Beach City Council issued a six-month moratorium on any new commercial vessel licenses or licenses for commercial maritime activity, including charter fishing, water taxis, parasailing and other marine businesses. The ordinance was amended in July and is expected to expire in December.

Existing licenses will not be affected, and business owners can still renew their licenses. If a license is relinquished, a new license can be issued. Prospective maritime business owners can still apply for a license in the interim and will be added to a waitlist, per the ordinance.

In addition to prohibiting new licenses, the resolution included an amnesty provision, where unlicensed marine businesses could apply for a license and pay the outstanding fees and be added to the waitlist. That period ended on July 31.