Contact: Patricia Smith
Date: June 27, 2008
Phone: (252) 726-7021

NO CHANGES IN N.C. MARINE FISHERIES 2008 STOCK STATUS REPORT

RALEIGH – Striped bass populations are still doing well in the ocean and in the Albemarle Sound area.

Bluefish stocks are still viable, too.

Red drum stocks are still recovering. Bay scallop populations are still depleted.

No important marine fisheries species is doing better or worse than it was last year, according to the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries 2008 Stock Status Report. The report was released today at a N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission meeting in Raleigh.

“I am pleased no stocks were downgraded in this year’s report,” said Louis Daniel, director of the state Division of Marine Fisheries. “I am hopeful that this trend will continue as more stocks recover and become viable.”

The division annually grades the status of 39 species of marine finfish, shellfish, shrimp and crabs as either viable, recovering, concern, depleted or unknown. The grades serve as a barometer of the overall health of the state’s fishery resources, and they are used to prioritize development of fishery management plans.

A stock is considered viable when it exhibits stable or increasing trends in a number of biological factors associated with healthy populations, such as a normal distribution of sizes, ages and spawning-age females or when it has met biological targets for sustainable harvest.

A recovering stock shows marked and consistent improvement in the criteria listed for a viable stock, but has not yet reached its target.

Stocks designated as concern are those that do not have an approved stock assessment or fishery management plan, but have seen increased fishing pressure, a decline in landings, lack a normal age distribution or are negatively impacted by environmental factors that cannot be controlled.

A depleted stock is a population in which there are too few spawning females to support an active fishery. Factors that can contribute to this status include overfishing, poor water quality, habitat loss, larvae survival and disease. This status determination is based on an approved stock assessment or fishery management plan.

A stock is classified as unknown when there is not sufficient data to determine trends in fishing pressure, landings or biological factors. Stocks designated as unknown are often prioritized for research programs.

A complete list of the 2008 Stock Status Report can be found at the division Web site at www.ncdmf.net.

Contact: Patricia Smith
Date: June 17, 2008
Phone: (252) 726-7021

MARINE FISHERIES COMMISSION MEETS NEXT WEEK IN RALEIGH

MOREHEAD CITY – The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission has a full slate of topics involving fishery management plans scheduled for its meeting next week in Raleigh.

The commission will consider proposals involving several fishery management plans, including tentative approval to a draft amendment to the Red Drum Fishery Management Plan that will start the process of adopting rules to implement recommendations in it.

The draft red drum amendments proposes prohibiting the use of J hooks larger than the manufacturer’s size 4/0, except for non-offset circle hooks, from July through September each year, while fishing with natural bait in Pamlico Sound and its tributaries.

It also recommends splitting the existing 250,000-pound annual commercial cap into two seasons and expanding commercial gill net attendance requirements.

Other fishery management plans slated for final approval and adoption of rules to implement them are a Kingfish Fishery Management Plan, amendments to the Oyster and Clam Fishery Management Plans and amendments to the Interjurisdictional Fishery Management Plans.

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries also plans to release its 2008 stock status report.

The commission business meetings begin at 9 a.m. June 26 and 8:30 a.m. June 27 at the Brownstone Hotel in Raleigh. The commission also will hold a public comment period at 7 p.m. June 25 at the same location.

Contact: Patricia Smith
Date: June 16, 2008
Phone: (252) 726-7021

STRIPED BASS SEASON CLOSES JULY 1

MOREHEAD CITY – Recreational striped bass fishing will close July 1 in all central and southern waters of the state.

The closure will implement new striped bass restrictions, including an annual striped bass fishing season, adopted by both the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission and the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission.

The closure will encompass all coastal waters from a line running from Roanoke Marshes across Pamlico Sound to Eagle Nest Bay (near Pea Island National Refuge in Dare County) to the South Carolina state line. Waters within the closure area include coastal, joint and inland designations of the Neuse, Tar-Pamlico and Pungo rivers and all their tributaries extending upstream to the first impoundment of the main course of each river or tributary.

Possession of striped bass in these waters will be prohibited during the closure, and all striped bass that are caught must be immediately returned to the water.

The season will open from October 1, 2008 through April 30, 2009 in all central and southern waters, except the Cape Fear River, with an 18-inch minimum size limit and a two-fish per person creel limit. Also, no striped bass between 22 inches and 27 inches may be taken from waters classified as joint or inland.

The Cape Fear River will remain closed to striped bass fishing year-round.

The restrictions are needed to protect spawning fish and rebuild the stock from depleted status.

The commercial striped bass fishery in the Central/Southern Striped Bass Management Area is managed under a separate 25,000-pound quota along with restrictions on seasons, net mesh sizes, net tie-down requirements, net attendance and limitations on setting nets close to shorelines.

Maps of designated inland, joint, and coastal waters may be viewed at the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries’ Web site, www.ncfisheries.net. Click on “Maps to Download,” and then select “Descriptive Boundaries for Coastal-Joint-Inland Waters.” A booklet designating the boundaries of the state’s coastal, joint and inland waters by county is available for free download from the Wildlife Resources Commission’s Web site, www.ncwildlife.org. Click on the Fishing link on the left side of the page; then select “Coastal, Joint, and Inland Fishing Waters Designation in North Carolina” under the Coastal Recreational Fishing information box.

For more information, contact Katy West, Division of Marine Fisheries Pamlico District manager, at (252) 946-6481 or Katy.West@ncmail.net

Contact: Patricia Smith
Date: June 11, 2008
Phone: (252) 726-7021

IT’S TIME FOR COMMERCIAL LICENSE RENEWALS

MOREHEAD CITY – The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries wants to remind commercial fishermen that their 2008 commercial fishing licenses expire June 30.

They will need to hold a valid 2009 Standard Commercial Fishing License or Retired Standard Commercial Fishing License to fish commercially, starting July 1.

The division sent letters out in May to all license holders encouraging them to renew their licenses by mail. Fishermen may also renew their licenses at any of the division offices in Elizabeth City, Columbia, Wanchese, Washington, Morehead City and Wilmington.

Hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Fishermen coming to the Morehead City headquarters should be advised that the license office has temporarily moved into the main building. They should come in through the main entrance.

For more information, contact Janice Fulcher, division license coordinator, at (252) 726-7021 or (800) 682-2632.

Contact: Patricia Smith
Date: June 10, 2008
Phone: (252) 726-7021

OYSTER SHELL RECYCLING PROGRAM TO RECOGNIZE PARTICIPANTS

MOREHEAD CITY – The N.C. Oyster Shell Recycling Program will hold ceremonies on the coast in June to recognize volunteers, government agencies and businesses for their support.

More than 62 participants in the Oyster Shell Recycling Program will receive plaques thanking them for their contributions.

“These are the people who make the program work,” said Sabrina Varnam, Oyster Shell Recycling Program coordinator.

They include members of conservation groups, civic organizations, schools and other interested individuals.

“These people spend hours of their own time and their own money because they believe North Carolina’s oyster population is worth saving for the many benefits they provide,” Varnam said.

They include restaurateurs who agree to separate their shell from trash so that they can be picked up for the program.

“Even though the majority of restaurants buy their oysters from the Gulf States, they are allowing us to use the shell to enhance North Carolina’s oyster resource,” Varnam said. “They do this in the hope that one day the majority of the oysters they serve will come from local waters.”

They also include county governments and solid waste businesses that are instrumental in providing collection sites.

Oysters are a food source for humans, birds and fish and serve as nature’s water filters. They clean pollutants from the water. Oyster reefs also provide habitat for baby fish and other marine life.

When oysters spawn, the larvae need a hard substrate on which to attach and grow. And oysters prefer to attach to shell material.

The state has, for years, used oyster shell in oyster rehabilitation programs. The Oyster Shell Recycling Program started in the fall of 2003 to establish public places where people could donate their shells. The program has grown from collecting 711 bushels of oyster shells in 2003 to more than 32,000 bushels in 2007.

Plaques will be given to those who have participated in the program for more than one year. Ceremonies have been scheduled as follows:

New Hanover County
10 a.m., June 17
Heck of a Peck Oyster Bar
4039 Masonboro Loop Road, Wilmington

Pender County
2 p.m., June 17
Mako's Raw Bar & Grille
55 Scotts Loop Road, Scott's Hill

Craven County
10 a.m., June 19th
Coastal Regional Solid Waste Management Authority
(Tuscarora landfill facility)
7400 Old Highway 70, Cove City

Pamlico County
1 p.m., June 19th
Gary's Downeast Seafood Restaurant
7630 N.C. 306 S., Arapahoe

Carteret County
9:30 a.m., June 20th
The Ice House Restaurant
109 South 6th St., Morehead City

Beaufort County
10 a.m., June 26th
Blackbeard's Restaurant & Lounge
1000 Washington St., Washington

Martin County
3 p.m., June 26th
Sunnyside Oyster Bar
1102 Washington St., Williamston

Columbus County
11 a.m., June 30th
Dale's Seafood of Whiteville
107 South Powell Blvd., Whiteville

Onslow County
10 a.m., July 1st
Hammock's Beach State Park
1572 Hammock Beach Road, Swansboro

A list of plaque recipients is below, including an additional 12 who were recognized in earlier ceremonies in Brunswick and Pitt counties. Additional ceremonies in other counties will be scheduled for later this year.

For more information, contact Varnam at (252) 808-8056 or Sabrina.Varnam@ncmail.net.