April 12, 1996 - MOREHEAD CITY -- Bruce Freeman, Director of the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF), is requiring that all gill nets with a mesh size of 5 1/4 inches and larger, with the exception of flounder nets, be removed from the waters of the Albemarle Sound Management Area by 12:01 a.m. on Monday, April 15, 1996.

Fishermen are reminded that the commercial season for the harvest of striped bass will close in all state waters, except the Cape Fear River, on April 15, 1996. The commercial shad fishery in coastal waters will also close on that same date.

The Albemarle Sound Management Area includes the Albemarle, Currituck, Croatan and Roanoke Sounds and their joint water tributaries.

For more information, contact Harrel Johnson, DMF-Elizabeth City, (919)264-3911 or (800) 338-7805.

April 12, 1996 - MOREHEAD CITY -- Officials with the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) have announced that river herring season in North Carolina waters will be extended until Monday, April 22, 1996.

Bruce Freeman, DMF Director, explained, "The herring season was scheduled to close on April 15, 1996; however, due to unusually cold water temperatures experienced this winter, the arrival of the peak run of river herring has been delayed. While we want fishermen to be able to make a living, we must be mindful that the river herring resource is at a low point. In order to ensure that this fishery does not collapse, certain conservation management measures must be maintained."

The decision to extend the herring season has come after much discussion between fishermen, the DMF, and the Marine Fisheries Commission (MFC). Last year, in an effort to implement conservation measures for river herring, the MFC voted to close the season on April 15 of each year until the stock shows significant signs of recovery. By closing the season in the middle of April, it was felt that fishermen would be allowed to harvest some fish, while still allowing significant numbers of herring to complete their migration to the spawning grounds to reproduce - aiding in the recovery of this stock. The herring have not arrived this year because of unusually cold winter temperatures, and fishermen have argued they would be denied a fishing season if the April 15 closure stayed in effect.

"The decision to extend the herring season is a good solution to a difficult problem," said Freeman. "The citizens of our state will be allowed to make a living, while we, as fisheries managers, are still able to do our job of conserving and protecting this public resource. Our recently completed stock assessment shows that the stock can sustain a harvest of about 250,000 pounds and still be able to successfully rebuild the resource. If this poundage of herring has not been harvested by April 22, we may consider extending this season even further."

For more information on river herring, please call Harrel Johnson or Sara Winslow, DMF-Elizabeth City, at (919)264-3911 or (800)338-7805.

During a recent series of public meetings, gill net fishermen in the southern portion of the state requested a change in the closure time. These fishermen argued they were being prevented from fishing for two days a week, due to different fishing techniques used in the southern coastal counties. After reviewing the situation, DMF officials decided to shift the closure period to noon on Saturdays through noon on Sundays, in waters south of Bogue Inlet.

North of Bogue Inlet, the traditional closure will continue to remain from midnight on Saturdays through midnight on Sundays, and will also be in effect until April 30, 1996.

For more information, please contact Louis Daniel, DMF-Morehead City, at (919)726-7021 or (800)682-2632 or Rich Carpenter, DMF-Wilmington, at (910)395-3900 or (800)248-4536.

April 11, 1996 - MOREHEAD CITY --The Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) will hold a series of workshops for fishermen to discuss potential new restrictions for bycatch reduction devices (BRDs) which are required in shrimp trawls. Bycatch is the unintentional harvest of non-targeted fish or shellfish and BRDs are openings in the net that allow undersized finfish to escape.

For several years, North Carolina has been on the conservation forefront in the research of bycatch reduction, serving as a model for other state programs. Since 1992, the DMF has required BRDs in nets used to harvest shrimp in order to reduce the bycatch of undersized weakfish and other finfish. This action was taken in order to comply with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission's Weakfish Fishery Management Plan, which required a reduction of 50% of the weakfish in shrimp trawl's bycatch.

Because BRDs are a relatively new conservation tool, fisheries managers and fishermen have been testing various designs for effectiveness. After several years of research, DMF has found that three varieties of BRDs are most successful in the elimination of bycatch; they are a large mesh funnel excluder, a large mesh extended funnel excluder and the Florida Fish Excluder. Because these particular BRDs have yielded the best results in bycatch reduction, the DMF, in the near future, will be requiring fishermen to install one of these varieties of BRDs in their shrimp trawls.

Workshops will be held at the following locations along the coast for fishermen and net makers to discuss and examine the recommended BRDs:

When the season opened on February 16, Bruce Freeman, DMF Director, stressed his desire for the commercial striped bass harvest to occur only as a bycatch to other types of directed gill net fisheries. The director cautioned fishermen to avoid excessive bycatch mortality of striped bass in small mesh gill nets, shad nets and flounder nets, or he would be forced to curtail or prohibit their use. Because data from the DMF sampling program and independent random observations of commercial fishing operations show that bycatch mortality is increasing, stricter regulations for the commercial harvest of striped bass must be implemented.

Beginning Monday, April 8, 1996 fishermen will be allowed a daily possession of striped bass up to 15 percent of the total day's catch, but not to exceed three striped bass per day.

These striped bass must be 18 inches or larger; any undersized fish that are caught should be handled carefully and returned to the water where taken as quickly as possible. By practicing careful release techniques and observing fishing regulations, fishermen help preserve fish for the future.

During the remainder of the season, the following gill net restrictions will apply to the Albemarle Sound Management Area:

By taking this action, the DMF will allow fishermen to continue their directed fisheries for shad, river herring, mullet and white perch while managing Albemarle Sound Management Area striped bass stocks within the annual quota established by the North Carolina Estuarine Striped Bass Fishery Management Plan.

The commercial season on striped bass in the Albemarle Sound Management Area is scheduled to close at midnight on April 15, 1996.

All dealers must obtain a valid 1995/96 Albemarle Sound Management Area Dealer's Striped Bass Permit. Dealers are also required to place an Albemarle Sound Management Area sales tag through the gill cover on any striped bass they pack for transport, sell or offer for sale.

For more information regarding striped bass, please contact Harrel B. Johnson, DMF - Elizabeth City, (919)264-3911 or (800)338-7805.

April 4, 1996 -MOREHEAD CITY -- Officials with the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) have announced that during the second year of the North Carolina Trip Ticket Program, the data collection mechanism for commercial landings continued its successful track record.

"North Carolina has one of the best data collection systems in the United States," said DMF Director, Bruce Freeman, "and The Trip Ticket Program is the backbone of that system." "In fact, our program chief, Paul Phalen, has just been appointed to a team that is designing a similar statistics program for the entire Atlantic Coast."

The Trip Ticket Program collects data on North Carolina commercial landings and effort (trips) by requiring seafood dealers to record each purchase of fish and shellfish, and submit copies of "trip tickets" on a monthly basis. Information entered on a trip ticket includes data on the species and amount of seafood caught, the type of gear used, and the landing location. The data gathered from the program helps fishery mangers and the commercial fishing industry ensure that North Carolina marine resources remain well-managed and abundant.

Data gathered from trip tickets were instrumental in helping the State of North Carolina and the North Carolina Fisheries Association reverse a federally imposed moratorium on the harvest of weakfish in federal waters from three to 200 miles off the east coast. The federal fishery management agency could only access commercial weakfish catches as recent as 1993, and they used this data as a rationale for the weakfish ban. North Carolina was able to use detailed catch data from as recently as the 1995 harvest season in order to successfully argue that the moratorium would not serve as a conservation measure as intended, but would, in fact, negatively impact juvenile weakfish.

Data gathered by the Trip Ticket Program are also being used by the Moratorium Steering Committee to help define the commercial industry, redesign North Carolina's fisheries management system, and develop a comprehensive, but simplified, license system. Fishermen will also be able to use data collected as proof of activity in the event of limited entry or when obtaining financial assistance if a natural disaster, such as a hurricane or red tide, were to strike.

Freeman views the Trip Ticket Program as a win-win situation for everyone involved, "Fishery managers are able to use real-time data in order to structure and implement realistic management plans, while fishermen, and the public, gain the benefit of a well-managed resource." Freeman credits the fishing industry with making this program work, "Much of the program's success can be attributed to the cooperation from seafood dealer's, their input has proven invaluable."

To receive the North Carolina Commercial Landings for 1995 or for more information about the trip ticket program, contact Dee Lupton, DMF-Morehead City, at (919)726-7021 or (800)682-2632.

Landings data can also be accessed through the Internet at DMF's homepage address: http://www.ehnr.state.nc.us/EHNR/DMF/

4 April 1996 -MOREHEAD CITY -- The Fisheries Moratorium Steering Committee (MSC) will meet on April 11 and 12, 1996 at the Crystal Coast Civic Center, Highway 70 East, 3505 Arendell Street, Morehead City, N.C. The meeting will begin at 11 a.m. on Thursday, April 11. The meeting is open to the public.

An open forum is held at the beginning of each MSC meeting so that committee members can answer questions and receive public comment regarding the preliminary recommendations.

During the April meeting, the committee will review the preliminary recommendations from the Law Enforcement Subcommittee, which includes the development of a point system for violations and the creation of a volunteer program. A report entitled "Effort Management in North Carolina Fisheries: A Total Systems Approach" will also be reviewed.

The MSC was created by the 1994 General Assembly to make recommendations regarding the restructuring of North Carolina's fisheries management system. The committee has been meeting for the last 18 months to put together a set of draft proposals that would bring widespread changes to both commercial and recreational fishing. Primary areas of focus include licensing, Marine Fisheries Commission structure, gear, law enforcement and habitat. The MSC will continue to meet monthly until June, when they will complete their draft recommendations. Throughout the summer, 15-20 statewide public meetings are planned. Final MSC recommendations should be completed by September and presented to the Joint Seafood and Aquaculture Legislative Study Committee. The General Assembly should vote on the recommendations during the 1997 legislative session.

Bob Lucas, Chairman of the Moratorium Steering Committee, has been pleased with the public participation at the previous meetings, but he is somewhat confused about recent negative publicity alleging the committee has been hostile and unresponsive to the public. "We have averaged 100 to 150 people at each of our earlier meetings this year, and well over two hours is spent at the beginning of each meeting answering questions from the audience." Lucas stressed, "The public has also participated in the review of the preliminary recommendations throughout each of the meetings, asking for clarification of issues or making welcomed suggestions. The committee is trying to set up a management structure that makes common sense, and I truly believe we will accomplish this goal if folks continue to come to our meetings and share their opinions and ideas."

To learn more about the Moratorium Steering Committee or to receive a copy of the committee's preliminary recommendations, contact Mike Street, Division of Marine Fisheries, at (919)726-7021 or (800)682-2632.