Releases June 24, 2010
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is reminding beach-bound anglers, particularly those headed to the coast for the popular and busy July 4 week, to purchase their saltwater fishing license before they leave home and avoid potential long lines at tackle and bait shops, sporting good stores, and other wildlife service agent locations along the coast.
Anglers can purchase a license by:
(1) calling the Wildlife Resources Commission at (888) 248-6834. Hours of operation are 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., 7 days a week;
(2) going to the Wildlife Resources Commission’s website at ncwildlife.org and clicking on the yellow “Purchase License” button at the top left side of the page;
(3) visiting a local Wildlife Service Agent. Most are located in bait-and-tackle shops, hunting and sporting good stores, and larger chain stores.
Licenses can also be purchased at one of six Division of Marine Fisheries offices located along the coast. For locations, visit the agency’s website at www.ncfisheries.net.
A Coastal Recreational Fishing License (CRFL) is required for anyone 16 years and older to fish recreationally in the state’s coastal fishing waters, which include sounds, coastal rivers, and their tributaries out to three miles into the ocean. Recreational anglers who catch fish from three miles to 200 miles offshore also need this license in order to transport fish back to the shore.
Prices for the CRFL vary depending on residency, age, duration, and type of license purchased. For residents, the annual cost for a CRFL is $15; for a 10-day license, $5. For non-residents, the annual cost for a CRFL is $30; a 10-day license is $10.
For more information on the CRFL, including a comprehensive list of all available licenses, or to download a document of frequently asked questions, visit www.ncwildlife.org/license.
The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries will allow gill net fishermen to modify their old flounder nets to meet current regulations for mesh depth.
Fishermen may bind their old nets so that they fish only 15 meshes deep, said Louis Daniel, director of the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries.
Daniel issued a proclamation May 13, which took effect May 15, requiring fishermen that set large mesh gill nets (4-inch to 6½ mesh) to use low-profile nets of no more than 15 meshes in height in inshore waters. Mesh size refers to the size of the openings between the knots of a net.
“We’ve heard from so many fishermen, who either could not find 15-mesh webbing or had already purchased deeper nets prior to the new regulation taking effect May 15,” Daniel said. “We wanted to allow them a way to continue to fish, with the expectation that they will purchase the proper 15-mesh webbing in the future.”
Deeper nets may be cinched every 10 feet, so that they fish as a low-profile net, Daniel said. The nets may not fish deeper than 15 meshes at any place on the net, he said.
Another policy-decision the division has made to clarify the new net regulations pertains to the use of float lines.
The proclamation prohibits the use of cork, floats, or other buoys, except those required for identification, on large mesh gill nets set north of the B. Cameron Langston Bridge at N.C. 58 in Emerald Isle in inshore waters.
The proclamation does not specifically prohibit the use of float line (foam core line where the flotation is built inside the rope), and the division is allowing its use.
However, fishermen may not use a continuous line of float line for multiple sets. They may use a continuous lead line on the bottom of the net, but these nets require two yellow, properly-marked buoys at the end of each 100 yard shot of net.
The proclamation also does not require tie-downs for nets, although the requirement for tie-downs in the upper Neuse, Pamlico, and Pungo rivers is still in effect.
The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission is looking for individuals to serve on the Sea Turtle Advisory Committee and provide advice on various issues related to sea turtles.
Duties of this committee will include, but are not limited to: reviewing sea turtle observer reports; devising means for fishermen to report sea turtle interactions; assisting with fishermen education; determining measures to reduce the incidental take of sea turtles; monitoring observer program issues; and reviewing all future Incidental Take Permit provisions and take calculations prior to submittal of formal applications to the National Marine Fisheries Service.
Individuals interested in serving as advisers should be willing to attend meetings at least once every two months and actively participate in the committee process. Advisers will be reimbursed for travel and other expenses incurred in relation to their official duties.
The Marine Fisheries Commission chairman appoints committee members for three-year terms.
Adviser applications are available online at www.ncfisheries.net/mfc/advisorforms.html or by calling (252) 808-8022 or (800) 682-2632.
Applications should be returned by July 7 to the Division of Marine Fisheries, P.O. Box 769, Morehead City, NC 28557, Attention: Kelly Mullen.
The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries is accepting proposals for the Boating
Infrastructure Grant (BIG) Program for federal fiscal year 2011.
BIG is a grant program of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that reimburses up to 75 percent of projects that provide dockage and other facilities for recreational transient vessels that are at least 26 feet long. It was authorized by Congress in 1998 and is funded by excise taxes on fishing equipment and motorboat fuel.
The division serves as the liaison between projects in North Carolina and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the BIG program.
Some examples of potentially eligible activities include transient slips, mooring buoys, day-docks, safe harbor facilities (including temporary safe anchorage or a harbor of refuge during a storm), floating and fixed piers and breakwaters, dinghy docks, restrooms, retaining walls, bulkheads, dockside utilities, sewage pump-out stations, recycling and trash receptacles, dockside electric, water and telephone capabilities, one-time dredging, navigational aids, and marine fueling stations.
BIG funds are distributed each year. Grants are available on a two-tiered basis. For Tier 1 grants, all states receive $100,000 per grant cycle as long as proposals meet the program’s guidelines. Tier 2 grants are reserved for large-scale, more expensive undertakings and are awarded on a nationwide competitive basis.
This past year, Beaufort Harbor Marina and Yacht Club of Beaufort competed successfully at the Tier 2, national level. They are scheduled to receive more than $455,000 toward the development of a full-service marina in Beaufort’s Town Creek. Cypress Cove Marina in Columbia will receive a Tier 1 grant award.
For information about grant availability and proposal development, please visit the division’s website at www.ncdmf.net/grants/BIG.html or contact Kelly Price, Federal Aid coordinator for the division, at P.O. Box 769, Morehead City, N.C. 28557-0769. You may also contact Price at (252) 808-8168 or (800) 682-2632 (in North Carolina only). You may contact Price by e-mail at Kelly.Price@ncdenr.gov.
The deadline for applications to be received by the division is July 29. Electronic submission is preferred.
The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries will allow fishermen to use a top line to connect multiple 100-yard gill net sets.
Division Director Louis Daniel issued a proclamation today revising regulations that went into effect May 15 to allow for this change.
The regulations still limit fishermen who use large mesh gill nets (4-inch to 6 ½ mesh) to 100-yard sets in most inshore waters of the state, but allow a continuous top line to facilitate deployment and retrieval of the nets.
“I am convinced the fishermen who use net reels will be able to get their nets up more quickly and efficiently if we allow them to use a continuous top line,” Daniel said.
Daniel reconsidered an earlier decision about the use of top line after receiving comments from fishermen about retrieval methods when using net reels. He also states that use of a top line will not pose additional threat to threatened and endangered sea turtles.
“I have listened to the fishermen and want to do what I can to allow them to fish while still protecting sea turtles,” Daniel said.
