Releases – December 10, 2015
In adopting a supplement to the Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan, the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission has instituted a combination of size limit changes, modifications to fishing gear allowances, total allowable landings, and season closures.
Beginning Jan. 1, 2016, the commercial minimum size limit will go up from 14 inches to 15 inches, making it the same as the recreational fishery.
To minimize regulatory discards with the size limit increase, the commission established a 6-inch minimum mesh size for anchored large-mesh gill nets.
Starting in 2016, a statewide season closure of anchored, large-mesh gill nets will be put in place each year from Oct. 16-Dec. 31. The Dec. 1-31 commercial southern flounder closure will remain in effect this year.
Also beginning in 2016, the recreational southern flounder season will close Oct. 16-Dec. 31 for the hook-and line and gig fisheries.
Flounder pound nets will be subject to a 5 ¾-inch escape panel requirement. Flounder pound nets will also be subject to total allowable landings for different water bodies that represent a 38 percent reduction compared to 2011-2015 pound net landings.
The commercial gig fishery will close when the pound net quota is met.
The N.C. Division of Marine Fishery plans to present information on what the quotas will be under these regulations at the commission’s February 2016 meeting.
In other business, the commission voted to: (1) forward the names of Jack Cox, Kenny Fex, Bernie McCants, and Jon Haag to the governor for consideration for nomination to the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council obligatory seat; (2) send a draft amendment to the Oyster and Hard Clam fishery management plans to public comment; (3) approve information updates for the state’s Interjurisdictional and Kingfish fishery management plans; (4) approve Amendment 1 to the N.C. Striped Mullet Fishery Management Plan and two associated permanent rules; (5) approve a rule that clarifies mechanical harvesting; (6) send a letter to the governor, the state senate president pro-tem, the speaker of the state house of representatives, and all members of the General Assembly requesting consideration of comments from all user groups related to the issuance of a joint enforcement agreement with National Marine Fisheries Service law enforcement; and (7) send a draft update to the Coastal Habitat Protection Plan out for public comment.
Audio of the meeting can be found online at http://portal.ncdenr.org/web/mf/mfc-audio-nov-2015.
For more information, contact Nancy Fish in the Marine Fisheries Commission Office at (252) 808-8021 or Nancy.Fish@ncdenr.gov.
N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries staff members have taken positions of influence on a federal and an interstate fisheries board.
Michelle Duval, executive assistant for councils, was elected chairman of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council in September; and Patti Fowler, chief of the Shellfish Sanitation and Recreational Water Quality Section, was elected chairman of the Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference in October.
“It definitely shows the high regard in which North Carolina is held by these multi-jurisdictional boards,” said division Director Louis Daniel. “We are very proud of that.”
The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council is a federal board responsible for the conservation and management of fish stocks within the federal, 200-mile limit of the Atlantic off the coasts of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and east Florida to Key West. The chairman approves the council’s agendas, within statutory mandates, and appoints the chairs and vice-chairs of the council’s committees. Also, staff come to the chairman for direction on how to move forward with council issues, Duval said.
For the past several years, Duval has supported a long-term visioning project for the snapper/grouper fishery, and the council will be addressing a Draft Vision Blueprint for the Snapper/Grouper Fishery at its December meeting.
“One of the things I’d like to do is see that some of the suggestions that stakeholders have brought forward go through,” Duval said.
Duval said she will also push for a cooperative monitoring project involving fishermen.
Duval will serve a two-year term.
The Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference sets the guidelines for the National Shellfish Sanitation Program Model Ordinance, which is the minimum sanitary standards that states must follow to participate in interstate shellfish commerce. Fowler will chair the executive board as well as a biennial meeting. She will set agendas, pick committee memberships.
“As chairman, I would like to challenge members to be more involved in the committees and task forces, so that we can make the best decisions for everyone involved in the National Shellfish Program,” Fowler said.
Fowler was elected for a two-year term. She will retire from the division Jan. 1, but plans to continue serving as the Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference chairman.
For more information, contact Duval at 252-808-8011 or Michelle.Duval@ncdenr.gov or Fowler at 252-808-8147 or Patti.Fowler@ncdenr.gov.
Young anglers, female anglers, and fishermen in urban areas are most likely to go years without fishing regardless of where in the country they live, a follow-up report commissioned by the American Sportfishing Association (ASA) has revealed. The report, developed from a study on angler churn rates performed by Southwick Associates, does however highlight some regional differences in today’s anglers.
(1) Fishing participation is growing in roughly one-third of all states. Between 2004 and 2013, 17 states saw angler numbers climb, while the rest experienced declines or remained steady.
(2) More people travel to the West to fish, with 29 percent of non-resident angling licenses sold.
(3) Anglers in the Northeast and Midwest are more likely to remain active, with more than 20 percent of anglers buying a license 5 out of 5 years.
(4) Regionally, the rate of not renewing fishing licenses is highest in the Southeast (53 percent) and lowest in the Midwest (28 percent).
“We know the primary reasons why people fish is to have fun with friends and family in an outdoor setting,” Rob Southwick, Southwick Associates’ president said. “This latest research shows that, with some regional differences, younger anglers, women, and urbanites are more likely to find other ways to achieve these benefits besides fishing. If fishing participation is to grow, we need to ensure fishing provides these benefits conveniently and competitively.”
By identifying those groups most apt to sit out of fishing for a year or more, the opportunity exists to craft programs to get them re-engaged with fishing and/or improve their fishing experiences.
“I think the most important thing we’ve discovered is that our challenge may not be as much about getting people to take up fishing as it is keeping people fishing from year-to-year,” said Mike Nussman, president and CEO of the American Sportfishing Association. He noted that after buying a license one year, approximately 15 million people—almost half of all anglers—do not buy one the following year. Nussman noted how important it is for game and fish agencies, as well angling organizations, to work together to improve access, fishing quality, and convenience in order to entice more anglers to buy a license every year.
In developing their findings, Southwick Associates examined 12 states across the country, selected for their regional representation, and looked at license purchase data over a 10-year period from 2004 to 2013 and a 5-year period from 2009 to 2013. The states selected to create a nationally representative portrait of anglers included Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Mississippi, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, Utah, and Wisconsin.
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission has added five commissioners to its governing board and reappointed six commissioners to new terms.
Landon Zimmer, of Wilmington, was appointed by Senate leader Phil Berger and will serve a two-year term as an at-large commissioner.
John Stone, of Jackson Springs, was appointed by House Speaker Tim Moore and will serve a two-year term as an at-large commissioner.
Mike Johnson, of Hickory, was appointed by Gov. Pat McCrory and will serve a six-year term as the District 8 wildlife commissioner. District 8 encompasses 11 counties in western North Carolina.
Dean Proctor, also of Hickory, was appointed by Moore for a two-year term as an at-large commissioner.
Richard Edwards, of Wilmington, has served as a wildlife commissioner since 2013, having been appointed by then-House Speaker Thom Tillis for a two-year term that ended in June. He was appointed by McCrory for a six-year term as the commissioner for District 2, which encompasses 12 counties in southeastern North Carolina.
The six reappointed commissioners are: (1) Nat Harris, of Whitsett, who was reappointed by McCrory to a six-year term as the commissioner for District 5, which encompasses 11 counties in the Piedmont; (2) Thomas Fonville, of Raleigh, who was reappointed by Moore to a two-year term as an at-large commissioner; (3) Garry Spence, of Charlotte, who was reappointed by Berger to a two-year term as an at-large commissioner; (4) Tom Berry, of Greensboro, who was reappointed by Berger to a two-year term as an at-large commissioner; (5) Tim Spear of Creswell, who was reappointed by Moore to a two-year term as an at-large commissioner; and (6) Mark Craig, of Greensboro, who was reappointed by Berger to a two-year term as an at-large commissioner.
The 19-member commission establishes policies and regulations governing hunting, fishing and boating activities in North Carolina. Members serve until reappointed or replaced.
For more information about the commission, please visit www.ncwildlife.org
