Releases – April 10, 2014
For you ladies who want to learn more about saltwater fishing and don’t want to be bothered by your husband or boyfriend, the Oak Island Parks and Recreation Department has just the thing. The Women Anglers in Training Program, or WAIT for short, is a two day fishing seminar, April 26-27, just for the ladies.
The WAIT is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday at Oak Island. Saturday will be a day of hands-on classroom instruction at the Oak Island Recreation Department, and Sunday will be a fishing excursion to Oak Island Pier or out with a local captain for practicing Saturday’s lessons and some on-the-job experience.
The sessions on Saturday will include beginner and advanced topics such as: Introduction to Tackle, Terms, and Technology; Basic Knots; Flounder Fishing; Speckled Trout Fishing; Red Drum Fishing; Surf Fishing; Nearshore Trolling; Live Bait Slow Trolling; Throwing Cast Nets; and much more!
Some serious fishermen and fisherwomen have agreed to share their vast knowledge during the weekend. The instructors will be led by Oak Island resident Capt. Jerry Dilsaver, who is the 2001 SKA National Champion, 1998 USAA Angler of the Year, plus a Staff Writer at North Carolina Sportsman Magazine. Capt. Michael Brazil, Capt. Tommy Rickman, Capt. Marty Wright, and many more informative captains are part of the WAIT lineup!
There are two WAIT options:
Option One—$49.00 includes day of instruction and day of fun at Oak Island Pier.
Option Two—$129.00 includes day of instruction and fishing trip with local captain. Spaces are very limited for Option Two.
Both options include lunch both days, participant goodie bag, and drawing for many door prizes.
To Register, contact the Oak Island Parks & Recreation at (910) 278-4747 or (910) 278-5518. Or for more information you can go online to www.oakislandnc.com/Departments/Parks-Recreation.aspx.
The North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher is once again accepting used fishing rod donations. The fishing equipment is refurbished and given to local organizations, adults, and children in need.
Rick Wilkinson, a long-time Aquarium volunteer, founded the program and began rebuilding donated fishing gear in 1997. He gave the rigs to area organizations like St. Mary Social Ministry and Big Buddy. These efforts have put fishing poles into the hands of more than 400 people, according to Wilkinson’s estimates.
“I really like bringing old fishing gear back to life,” said Wilkinson, who started fishing when he was a child. “It makes me feel good to do this. And if a fishing rod I reworked can make someone’s life a little happier, then that’s just great.”
Used rod and reel donations can be made at the Aquarium’s Visitors Services desk between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. any day. Even an old tackle box is welcome. Please ensure that the rod and reel is in somewhat workable order and has no missing parts.
Several new marine fisheries rules went into effect April 1.
The rules will:
(1) Give the director of the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries proclamation authority to implement National Shellfish Sanitation Program harvester and dealer requirements for the protection of public health;
(2) Give the division director proclamation authority to set size, recreational bag, commercial trip, gear, season, and time restrictions on the taking of sheepshead if needed to maintain a sustainable harvest;
(3) Designate new seed oyster management areas at Possum Bay and Swan Point in New River;
(4) Clarify what organizations and activities are eligible to receive Scientific and Educational Activity permits and Coastal Recreational Fishing License Exemption permits from the Division of Marine Fisheries;
(5) Clarify that the exemptions to the general 4-inch size limit on fish only apply to finfish;
(6) Repeal a rule on hybrid striped bass culture that references outdated N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission rules;
(7) Implement an amendment to the Blue Crab Fishery Management Plan by:
(a) Broadening the authority of the director of the Division of Marine Fisheries to manage the blue crab fishery by proclamation under an adaptive management strategy. This includes the authority to implement more restrictive measures for the use of pots; restrict means and methods for managing the use of escape rings; and designate additional areas as crab spawning sanctuaries and extend the time that harvest restrictions are in place for all crab spawning sanctuaries.
(b) Clarifying existing rules and relocating rules in the rulebook for better organization.
(c) Codifying current proclamations, including one for the taking of mature female blue crabs with pots, reducing the exempted area for the Pamlico Sound Outer Banks region, but providing more clearly delineated boundaries for this area and the Newport River area. Other codifications include establishing a dividing line in Pamlico Sound for the taking of hard blue crabs using trawls of certain mesh sizes; closing the lower Broad Creek area (Neuse River) to crab pots June 1 through Nov. 30; and using the existing no trawl line along the Outer Banks in Pamlico Sound as the new boundary line where closure of escape rings to take small mature females is allowed.
(d) Using the type of bait instead of pot mesh size to define escape ring requirements in a crab pot.
(e) Requiring terrapin excluder devices in crab pots at a later date, after development and approval of criteria by the Marine Fisheries Commission.
(f) Opening eight non-pot areas (long haul areas) in the Pungo River to the use of pots, but keeping the Long Point non-pot area in Pamlico River closed to the use of pots.
The new rules will be available in a supplement to the June 1, 2013, N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission rulebook and posted on the division webpage at http://portal.ncdenr.org/web/mf/rules-and-regulations.
For more information, contact Catherine Blum, rulemaking coordinator, N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries, at (252) 808-8014 or Catherine.Blum@ncdenr.gov.
Congress is currently revising the Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), the law that governs our nation’s marine resources. Recreational saltwater anglers and the sportfishing and boating industries are intensifying efforts to ensure that their social, conservation, and economic priorities are well represented in the legislative process.
In a series of meetings on Capitol Hill, the Commission on Saltwater Recreational Fisheries Management’s co-chairs, Johnny Morris, founder and CEO, Bass Pro Shops, and Scott Deal, president, Maverick Boats, briefed members of Congress and media on the commission’s recommended changes to the Magnuson-Stevens Act. The commission, composed of anglers, scientists, former agency administrators, conservationists, industry representatives, and economists, wants to ensure that saltwater recreational fishing becomes a priority of NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service.
“Our commission offers a clear path to better stewardship of America’s marine fishery resources,” said Morris. “Today we ask Congress to join us on that path. We extend the invitation on behalf of all current anglers and future generations of anglers who will enjoy our nation’s resources for many years to come.”
Previewed in February during the 2014 Progressive Miami International Boat Show in Miami, FL, A Vision for Managing America’s Saltwater Recreational Fisheries outlines recreational fisheries management issues that need to be addressed in the Magnuson-Stevens Act reauthorization.
“This is the first time that the recreational fishing and boating community has set forth a comprehensive vision,” Deal said. “I’m honored to be a part of this effort and proud to help lead our collective industries in ensuring that Congress hears our voices.”
The economic impact of saltwater angling in the U.S. is considerable. In 2011, approximately 11 million Americans saltwater fished recreationally, spending $27 billion in pursuit of their sport. That activity generated more than $70 billion in economic output and sustained 450,000 jobs. Anglers contribute more than $1.5 billion annually to fisheries habitat and conservation via excise taxes, donations, and license fees alone.
Throughout 2013, members of the blue ribbon commission met to deliberate and debate strategies to improve saltwater recreational fisheries management. A wide range of experts and other stakeholders, including economists, scientists, federal and state agency administrators, conservationists, charter captains, and individual recreational anglers, were invited to meet with the commission to provide information and advice on a variety of fisheries management issues. The report reflects their input.
“The Magnuson-Stevens Act established a management system for commercial fisheries, which has made great strides in ending commercial overexploitation of our marine fisheries,” said Jeff Angers, president of the Center for Coastal Conservation. “However, for more than three decades it has focused primarily on commercial fishing. It’s time for Congress to do something for saltwater recreational fishing.”
A Vision for Managing America’s Saltwater Recreational Fisheries identifies six key policies that would achieve the commission’s vision. Those recommendations primarily focus on the Magnuson-Stevens Act reauthorization.
The recommendations include: (1) Establishing a national policy for recreational fishing; (2) Adopting a revised approach to saltwater recreational fisheries management; (3) Allocating marine fisheries for the greatest benefit to the nation; (4) Creating reasonable latitude in stock rebuilding timelines; (5) Codifying a process for cooperative management; and (6) Managing for the forage base.
“Congress should establish a national policy to promote saltwater recreational fishing,” said Mike Nussman, president and CEO of the American Sportfishing Association. “In addition, Congress must open the ‘rusted-shut’ door of marine fisheries allocation to achieve the greatest benefit to the nation.”
