MORATORIUM ON MENHADEN IN CHESAPEAKE BAY
December 20, 2019
After receiving letters from nine governors and countless fishing organizations and citizens up and down the East Coast, the Department of Commerce upheld the ASMFC’s finding that the menhaden reduction fishery in the Chesapeake Bay was out of compliance. As a result, the Department of Commerce has implemented a moratorium on the menhaden fishery in the Chesapeake Bay, effective starting in June unless or until the fishery is found to be back in compliance. This is the first time that a moratorium has been put in place on the fishery.
While this may be short-term, we’re hopeful that it represents a shift in how menhaden are managed moving forward. As we’ve outlined previously, Omega Protein is responsible for the vast majority of the menhaden fishery both in the Chesapeake Bay and in the Ocean. Historically, Omega Protein was a US-based company, however it was acquired by Canadian-based Cooke Seafood in December of 2017. Cooke is the same company that accidentally released more than 250,000 Atlantic Salmon in the Puget Sound in the Pacific Northwest - more here. Given that Omega is now a foreign-owned company, there is hope that the US clamps down on regulating menhaden, one of our nation’s most valuable natural resources, and protects them and the ecosystems that rely on them.
Again, there are a number of organizations focused on this issue, and you can read more about where we stand and what next steps are below. But for now, this was a big win and a step forward to protecting both the most important forage fish and nursery on the Atlantic coast.
https://www.menhadendefenders.org/
https://www.facebook.com/salth2oguides/
NEW BLUEFISH REGULATIONS - INCHING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
December 11, 2019
Just a couple months ago, a stock assessment determined that bluefish were overfished. This is something that I think many anglers up and down the east coast could have guessed, as they have been MIA the last few summers in numbers even remotely similar to what we have experienced historically. Since bluefish are managed federally under Magnuson Stevens, action was taken quickly and new regulations of 3 fish per person on private boats and 5 fish per person on a charter boat for 2020. This is a significant drop from the existing 15 fish per person per day, and a big step in the right direction.
That said, there are a few extenuating facts that we want to point out in regards to these regulations. First, very few people have kept or do keep 15 bluefish per day. As a result, that 15 fish per person per day limit was not utilized heavily, which is one reason that such a drastic drop was needed to reduce mortality. Further, the percent reduction in mortality that this reduction is intended to result in is based off 2018’s harvest numbers, which were historically low. Since we are basing that reduction off such a historically low overall harvest (likely due to decreased access to fish that season), the stage is set for continued overfishing to occur in 2020. As a result of that, again since these fish are regulated federally under Magnuson-Stevens, there will need to be payback for any overfishing that occurs - i.e. stricter regulations in 2021 and beyond.
Either way, this is a victory and hopefully a step towards regulating these fish and others for abundance rather than maximum harvest, but first we need to rebuild the stock. Lastly, there still is the issue of Conservation Equivalency with bluefish, as inside state waters are regulated by each state, so stay-tuned to see what your state’s regulations end up being.
For more detail on what went down at the regulatory meeting to discuss and implement these new regulations, read the ASGA’s write-up on the meeting.
https://saltwaterguidesassociation.com/bluefish-update-12-11-19/
HOLDING OMEGA PROTEIN ACCOUNTABLE - PROTECT MENHADEN
November 26, 2019
Menhaden are the most important fish in the sea. Removing them from the ecosystem, or simply depleting their population, would have a profound impact on essentially every predator that people fish for or watch. We’re talking striped bass, sharks, tuna, mahi-mahi, fluke, sea bass, whales, eagles, ospreys, gulls, egrets, herons - you name it, it likely relies on a healthy body of menhaden to survive.
It is for this reason that when Omega Protein, the largest (and essentially only) company running a reduction fishery on menhaden on the East Coast and in the Gulf of Mexico, decided to willingly exceed the quota set by the ASMFC for menhaden removals from the Chesapeake Bay - our nation’s largest estuary and birthplace / nursery for the vast majority of striped bass - we need to take notice and action needs to be taken. These fish are being caught in massive (bigger than you are imagining) seine nets that enclose enormous areas, piled into boats that then pump the waste water from the holding pens back into the environment, and then reduced to fish oil and fish meal. In addition to depleting areas of the invaluable forage that the menhaden provide all predators, as you might guess, this practice results in significant bycatch of the predators that often shadow these schools of bait, and also kill much of the wildlife that is exposed to the tainted water that is pumped back into the bay or ocean after the fish have been moved to pens.
Following Omega’s public dismissal of the ASMFC’s Chesapeake Bay quota, the Commission found the Company, and the menhaden fishery in general, out of compliance. The next step here is that this out-of-compliance finding goes to the Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, who decides whether to uphold that finding and impose a moratorium on the fishery until we are back in compliance with the regulations. Interestingly, the Governor of Virginia, in what I believe is an unprecedented move, wrote a letter to Secretary Ross urging him to uphold the out-of-compliance finding on his own state! If that doesn’t highlight the damage this fishery is having, I’m not sure what does.
Another thing we want to note and point out here is that Omega, which has historically been a U.S.-based company, was purchased by Cooke Seafood, the Canadian Company also known for the salmon farming that has been exceptionally detrimental and threatening to the natural salmon runs in the Pacific Northwest. Essentially, we are giving away an invaluable U.S. natural resource - menhaden - to a foreign owned company, all while also allowing them to destroy the ecosystem that supports the entire saltwater fishery on the East Coast / Gulf of Mexico.
Unlike other efforts, where as many individual letters as possible makes the largest impact, we recommend signing onto an existing letter, or letters, so that as many signatures as possible are delivered to the Secretary. Right now, there are two letters that we recommend signing, one from the American Saltwater Guides Association and the other from Menhaden Defenders. These two organizations are on the front lines and will be delivering letters to the Secretary with a lot of weight behind them, and every signature on those letters makes a difference. It takes just seconds to add your name, so please visit the links below and sign on TODAY:
https://www.menhadendefenders.org/take-action
https://www.facebook.com/salth2oguides/photos/rpp.762049080822929/922124254815410/?type=3&theater
THE ASMFC MISSES THE BOAT
November 4, 2019
Last Wednesday the ASMFC met to determine new regulations on striped bass, and decided to implement a slot limit of 1 fish per angler between 28” and 35”. I believe this was the worst choice on the table for striped bass, and the public comments that the ASMFC received supported the path that has worked in the past and the path that we supported leading up to the decision – 1 fish at 35” or larger. Why they went this route is up for interpretation, and I’m not going to go down that road here, but we will discuss it in the future. Simply put, though, the ASMFC is not working, and needs an overhaul in its process and its oversight – a good high-level summary of what that means can be found here. There is going to be an amendment to striped bass management discussed in 2020, so hopefully we can address some of those issues then and make some real changes to the way the Commission is structured and operates.
For now, let’s start with the reasons we think this was not the right path for striped bass:
Striped bass do not reproduce until they reach about 28” in length.
The most abundant sizes of striped bass currently are between 20” and 26” (born in 2015 & 2016).
As a result, those fish are the easiest to find and catch.
Importantly, as the most abundant sizes, their ability to reproduce is our best hope to rebuilding the stock.
Under this new regulation, not only are we opening them up for harvest as soon as they reach maturity (in 1-2 years), but we’re focusing all harvesting efforts on them and a few classes above them. This slot is intended to protect the largest females, which lay the most eggs, however it may wipe out these incredibly important, abundant year classes before they exit the slot limit, leaving no large fish to protect in five years and not allowing the smaller fish to reproduce enough (or at all) to sustain a healthy population.
It was critical that we protect these abundant year classes until AFTER they reproduced at least once, and this decision failed in that objective.
There’s also another issue that reared its head during the AMSFC meeting – Conservation Equivalency. New Jersey spent a lot of time establishing the meaning and utility of conservation equivalency “CE”. The short version of CE is that states are allowed to take the coastwide regulations (now 1 fish between 28” and 35” per angler) and come up with regulations that they can show will result in an equivalent reduction in harvest, and implement those instead. This is problematic in a lot of ways, and I think it’s easiest to show exactly what has happened with CE to date (this centers on New Jersey).
In 2014, under Addendum IV to Amendment VI of the Striped Bass Management Plan, the ASMFC changed the coast-wide regulations from 2 fish of 28” or larger per angler per day to 1 fish of 28” or larger per angler per day. These new regulations were implemented to reduce harvest of striped bass coast-wide by 25%. With that rule established, New Jersey did its own study, looking at data from its own state’s waters, and determined that allowing anglers in New Jersey to keep one fish BETWEEN 28” and 43” AND one fish above 43” resulted in the same reduction in harvest. I don’t think it takes a scientist to realize that there is no way that allowing people to keep two fish per trip instead of one will likely not result in the same reduction in harvest, but that’s what they were able to ‘prove’ to the ASMFC and that has been their regulation for the past four years. Not coincidentally, during those years New Jersey has harvested the most striped bass of any ocean state.
The second issue is where we go from here and how CE comes into play. The new regulations chosen by the ASMFC are meant to reduce harvest by 18%. That reduction refers to the harvest of the entire coast – from North Carolina to Maine. Since stripers spend more time during the year in some states over others, and because certain states harvest more than others (NJ), that 18% coast-wide reduction inherently implies that some states will need to take more than an 18% reduction while others will likely not. New Jersey, it turns out, would take the largest reduction in harvest if the 1 fish between 28” and 35” was implemented in every state, mainly because they harvest more fish than any other state to begin with.
What the New Jersey Commissioner did during the meeting was try to establish that the ‘equal reduction’ referred to each state separately, not to the coast as a whole. In doing so, he was trying to make sure that if NJ came up with regulations that resulted in an 18% reduction based on New Jersey’s 2018/2019 harvest levels, then they would be in-line with the new regulations. If that happens (and it’s looking very likely), then that intended 18% coast-wide reduction these regulations are targeting will not be met and overfishing may very well continue to occur on an already depleted stock. Additionally, conservation equivalency would allow those states that choose to pursue that path to harvest the largest females that the slot has set out to protect.
Next steps are states coming to the Commission with their CE proposals and state by state regulations will be put in place.
For more, take a look at the following posts:
https://currentseams.com/2019/10/31/three-major-takeaways-from-yesterdays-asmfc-vote/?fbclid=IwAR2sfgLxq_1yVpEj2DUF64IJj_vaPEpA5uWcekKZR83kcT8TrHTaTH9wVwo
https://saltwaterguidesassociation.com/striped-bass-comment-participation-and-conservation-equivalency/?fbclid=IwAR0sZoBqSTPukJabNeNhAOn7YS8u9wOFuMgT83hjQu1jHLw2Psm4vfmQOY0
Holding omega protein accountable - Protect menhaden
November 26, 2019
Menhaden are the most important fish in the sea. Removing them from the ecosystem, or simply depleting their population, would have a profound impact on essentially every predator that people fish for or watch. We’re talking striped bass, sharks, tuna, mahi-mahi, fluke, sea bass, whales, eagles, ospreys, gulls, egrets, herons - you name it, it likely relies on a healthy body of menhaden to survive.
It is for this reason that when Omega Protein, the largest (and essentially only) company running a reduction fishery on menhaden on the East Coast and in the Gulf of Mexico, decided to willingly exceed the quota set by the ASMFC for menhaden removals from the Chesapeake Bay - our nation’s largest estuary and birthplace / nursery for the vast majority of striped bass - we need to take notice and action needs to be taken. These fish are being caught in massive (bigger than you are imagining) seine nets that enclose enormous areas, piled into boats that then pump the waste water from the holding pens back into the environment, and then reduced to fish oil and fish meal. In addition to depleting areas of the invaluable forage that the menhaden provide all predators, as you might guess, this practice results in significant bycatch of the predators that often shadow these schools of bait, and also kill much of the wildlife that is exposed to the tainted water that is pumped back into the bay or ocean after the fish have been moved to pens.
Following Omega’s public dismissal of the ASMFC’s Chesapeake Bay quota, the Commission found the Company, and the menhaden fishery in general, out of compliance. The next step here is that this out-of-compliance finding goes to the Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, who decides whether to uphold that finding and impose a moratorium on the fishery until we are back in compliance with the regulations. Interestingly, the Governor of Virginia, in what I believe is an unprecedented move, wrote a letter to Secretary Ross urging him to uphold the out-of-compliance finding on his own state! If that doesn’t highlight the damage this fishery is having, I’m not sure what does.
Another thing we want to note and point out here is that Omega, which has historically been a U.S.-based company, was purchased by Cooke Seafood, the Canadian Company also known for the salmon farming that has been exceptionally detrimental and threatening to the natural salmon runs in the Pacific Northwest. Essentially, we are giving away an invaluable U.S. natural resource - menhaden - to a foreign owned company, all while also allowing them to destroy the ecosystem that supports the entire saltwater fishery on the East Coast / Gulf of Mexico.
Unlike other efforts, where as many individual letters as possible makes the largest impact, we recommend signing onto an existing letter, or letters, so that as many signatures as possible are delivered to the Secretary. Right now, there are two letters that we recommend signing, one from the American Saltwater Guides Association and the other from Menhaden Defenders. These two organizations are on the front lines and will be delivering letters to the Secretary with a lot of weight behind them, and every signature on those letters makes a difference. It takes just seconds to add your name, so please visit the links below and sign on TODAY:
https://www.menhadendefenders.org/take-action
https://www.facebook.com/salth2oguides/photos/rpp.762049080822929/922124254815410/?type=3&theater
The asmfc misses the boat
November 4, 2019
Last Wednesday the ASMFC met to determine new regulations on striped bass, and decided to implement a slot limit of 1 fish per angler between 28” and 35”. I believe this was the worst choice on the table for striped bass, and the public comments that the ASMFC received supported the path that has worked in the past and the path that we supported leading up to the decision – 1 fish at 35” or larger. Why they went this route is up for interpretation, and I’m not going to go down that road here, but we will discuss it in the future. Simply put, though, the ASMFC is not working, and needs an overhaul in its process and its oversight – a good high-level summary of what that means can be found here. There is going to be an amendment to striped bass management discussed in 2020, so hopefully we can address some of those issues then and make some real changes to the way the Commission is structured and operates.
For now, let’s start with the reasons we think this was not the right path for striped bass:
Striped bass do not reproduce until they reach about 28” in length.
The most abundant sizes of striped bass currently are between 20” and 26” (born in 2015 & 2016).
As a result, those fish are the easiest to find and catch.
Importantly, as the most abundant sizes, their ability to reproduce is our best hope to rebuilding the stock.
Under this new regulation, not only are we opening them up for harvest as soon as they reach maturity (in 1-2 years), but we’re focusing all harvesting efforts on them and a few classes above them. This slot is intended to protect the largest females, which lay the most eggs, however it may wipe out these incredibly important, abundant year classes before they exit the slot limit, leaving no large fish to protect in five years and not allowing the smaller fish to reproduce enough (or at all) to sustain a healthy population.
It was critical that we protect these abundant year classes until AFTER they reproduced at least once, and this decision failed in that objective.
There’s also another issue that reared its head during the AMSFC meeting – Conservation Equivalency. New Jersey spent a lot of time establishing the meaning and utility of conservation equivalency “CE”. The short version of CE is that states are allowed to take the coastwide regulations (now 1 fish between 28” and 35” per angler) and come up with regulations that they can show will result in an equivalent reduction in harvest, and implement those instead. This is problematic in a lot of ways, and I think it’s easiest to show exactly what has happened with CE to date (this centers on New Jersey).
In 2014, under Addendum IV to Amendment VI of the Striped Bass Management Plan, the ASMFC changed the coast-wide regulations from 2 fish of 28” or larger per angler per day to 1 fish of 28” or larger per angler per day. These new regulations were implemented to reduce harvest of striped bass coast-wide by 25%. With that rule established, New Jersey did its own study, looking at data from its own state’s waters, and determined that allowing anglers in New Jersey to keep one fish BETWEEN 28” and 43” AND one fish above 43” resulted in the same reduction in harvest. I don’t think it takes a scientist to realize that there is no way that allowing people to keep two fish per trip instead of one will likely not result in the same reduction in harvest, but that’s what they were able to ‘prove’ to the ASMFC and that has been their regulation for the past four years. Not coincidentally, during those years New Jersey has harvested the most striped bass of any ocean state.
The second issue is where we go from here and how CE comes into play. The new regulations chosen by the ASMFC are meant to reduce harvest by 18%. That reduction refers to the harvest of the entire coast – from North Carolina to Maine. Since stripers spend more time during the year in some states over others, and because certain states harvest more than others (NJ), that 18% coast-wide reduction inherently implies that some states will need to take more than an 18% reduction while others will likely not. New Jersey, it turns out, would take the largest reduction in harvest if the 1 fish between 28” and 35” was implemented in every state, mainly because they harvest more fish than any other state to begin with.
What the New Jersey Commissioner did during the meeting was try to establish that the ‘equal reduction’ referred to each state separately, not to the coast as a whole. In doing so, he was trying to make sure that if NJ came up with regulations that resulted in an 18% reduction based on New Jersey’s 2018/2019 harvest levels, then they would be in-line with the new regulations. If that happens (and it’s looking very likely), then that intended 18% coast-wide reduction these regulations are targeting will not be met and overfishing may very well continue to occur on an already depleted stock. Additionally, conservation equivalency would allow those states that choose to pursue that path to harvest the largest females that the slot has set out to protect.
Next steps are states coming to the Commission with their CE proposals and state by state regulations will be put in place.
For more, take a look at the following posts:
https://currentseams.com/2019/10/31/three-major-takeaways-from-yesterdays-asmfc-vote/?fbclid=IwAR2sfgLxq_1yVpEj2DUF64IJj_vaPEpA5uWcekKZR83kcT8TrHTaTH9wVwo
https://saltwaterguidesassociation.com/striped-bass-comment-participation-and-conservation-equivalency/?fbclid=IwAR0sZoBqSTPukJabNeNhAOn7YS8u9wOFuMgT83hjQu1jHLw2Psm4vfmQOY0
October 21, 2019
2019 Maryland Young-of-Year Striped Bass numbers well below average
Last week, Maryland released the 2019 young of the year numbers for striped bass in the Chesapeake. This survey is done every year and provides a snapshot into how successful stripers were at spawning. As is evident in this chart, stripers are an interesting fish in that the young-of-the year number can vary widely due to environmental conditions, with cool, wet winters and springs generally resulting in more effective spawns. That said, no matter how you look at it though, 2019 was not a good year despite being very wet and cool.
Back in 2012, regulations were put in place based on the belief that the strong 2011 class would result in higher recruitment when those fish reached spawning size, however very few of those fish ever made it out of the Bay, instead they were harvested by Bay anglers and the less conservative regulations resulted in the fish stock declining to where we are today. The chart also highlights how important strong classes are, an with 2015, 2017 and 2018 all above average (around poor 2016 and 2019 years), it is important that we allow those fish to reach spawning size and reproduce for several years before being harvested.
With the decision on 2020 regulations coming at the end of the month, hopefully this poor year will be taken into account like the strong class was in 2012, and the Commission takes a conservative approach moving forward to help them recover.
This information will also be reviewed, considered, discussed and analyzed in more depth as we move forward and the ASMFC begins the process of implementing a more comprehensive amendment to their Striped Bass Management Plan. It is during that period that the viability of the Chesapeake to continue producing strong young-of-the-year classes will be discussed. Judging by recent results (2011, 2015, etc.), we believe those strong classes are still possible, but the fish need to be protected so the spawning stock biomass remains at a level that makes strong spawns and recruitment more likely than not.
There are some other interesting factors here to consider when looking at these numbers, and the ASGA and Charles Witek both outline some of those in their recent posts. Take a read through:
October 6, 2019
Last Day to Send your Letters to the ASMFC on Striped Bass
October 7, 2019 is the LAST day to provide comments to the ASMFC on striped bass management. Once again, we are supporting the 1 fish at 35” in the ocean and 1 fish at 18” in the Chesapeake Bay. We also support mandatory use of circle hooks. Letters should be sent to:
Max Appelman, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, 1050 N. Highland St, Suite A-N, Arlington, VA 22201; 703.842.0741 (FAX) or at comments@asmfc.org (Subject line: Striped Bass Draft Addendum VI)
Here is our letter.
Dear Mr. Appelman,
I attended the public hearing meeting on September 25 in Bridgeport, CT, and wanted to follow-up on my comments there and support of Sub-Option 2A-1 and 2B-1 regarding Addendum VI to Amendment 6 to the Interstates Management Plan for Striped Bass.
Striped bass are overfished, and overfishing is occurring. I have watched the population decrease noticeably in my home waters of the Western Long Island Sound and in Rhode Island, where I fish frequently, and know that action must be taken to slow the depletion of the striped bass population.
Given that, and given the options presented by the Commission, I believe that 1 fish at 35” in the ocean and 1 fish at 18” in Chesapeake Bay present the best path forward. Given the inconsistent spawning success of striped bass, if harvest was focused entirely on specific year classes, once the strongest year classes (next up, 2015s) reach that slot, they would risk being wiped out, and with them, our greatest chance for high recruitment in the future. Second, as long as conservation equivalency is on the table for states, a slot does not make sense, since some states would undoubtedly find research that suggests killing the largest fish in the population has a similar impact than the proposed slot, putting the fish we are looking to protect with a slot back in the crosshairs. Third, there is little to no science outlining what the impact of releasing large fish would be.
While I support Sub-option 2A-1 and Sub-option 2B-1 of those that have been presented, it is my strong belief that more needs to be done in the management of striped bass to ensure that the population does not continue to decrease. These additional actions include the development of regulations that are designed with a higher than 50% probability of success and to not only stop overfishing, but to rebuild the stock back to the threshold that has been established and maintained in the past.
I have young twin boys, and I have lived my entire adult life looking forward to the day I can bring them fishing for striped bass with me, and I am deeply concerned that the opportunities I have had afforded me will not be available to them if significant action is not taken soon.
I appreciate your consideration and am hopeful that meaningful change is coming to protect these valuable fish.
Sincerely,
Taylor Ingraham
Tightlined Conservation Coalition
September 19, 2019
Omega Protein Dismisses Chesapeake Bay Menhaden Cap
Menhaden, Bunker, Pogys, whatever you call them, these filter-feeding forage fish are also known as the most important fish in the sea. In addition to being a critical source of food and contributor to water quality, they're incredibly oily, and the primary target of Omega Protein's reduction fishery. This company, which is now owned by Canadian Cooke Aquaculture, just issued a public press release announcing that they would NOT adhere to the Chesapeake Bay limits that the ASMFC imposed on the fishery.
There is a lot more to read about menhaden and the way it is managed and being exploited, and here are a few links with more information and efforts to help protect this resource. There will be more to come on this, and we’ll keep you posted on developments and steps forward.
Saltwater Guides Association Part 1 of a 2 Part series on Menhaden/Omega:
https://saltwaterguidesassociation.com/omega-protein-ignor…/
Menhaden Defenders Blog
https://www.menhadendefenders.org/blog
One Anglers' Voyage
https://oneanglersvoyage.blogspot.com/…/its-complicated-men…
August 21, 2019
ASMFC Releases Schedule for Public Hearings on Atlantic Striped Bass Draft Addendum VI
The ASMFC today announced the schedule for each state’s public hearings on striped bass management. These meetings are our chance to voice our opinion and help shape the regulations and management of the species moving forward. It was clear during the recent ASMFC meeting that the commissioners are listening, so it is incredibly important that as many people as possible attend each one and voice support for conservative measures so overfishing is ended and the stock can rebuild. Take a look at the schedule below and plug the closest one into your calendar. We will be at the meeting in Bridgeport, CT on September 25 and supporting Sub-option 2A-1 and 2B-1.
August 13, 2019
ASMFC Meeting Recap
On Thursday, August 8, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Atlantic Striped Bass Board met to discuss striped bass and the regulations on the fishery moving forward. For a bit of background, a benchmark stock assessment that was completed earlier this year determined that striped bass are overfished and overfishing is continuing to occur, so the ASMFC, under their own bylaws, is required to put regulations in place that stop overfishing of striped bass, and then also put in place a rebuilding plan to get that stock back to the sustainable stock threshold - the rebuilding plan is supposed to be designed to return fish to sustainable biomass within 10 years.
The addendum that was discussed gives only a 50% chance of ending overfishing - and proposes an 18% reduction in removals. The analysis done on this proposed reduction gives a 50% chance of ending overfishing, and a 13-year time-table for the rebuilding of the stock. Given that low percentage of projected success and the long time-horizon on rebuilding the stock, this is not ideal, however we will soon enter a public comment period and have an opportunity to influence the decisions on what the 2020 regulations will actually look like.
Currently, the options for what those regulations might look like are:
Option 1 - no change to current regulations (not good)
Option 2 - the 18% reduction as outlined above. To get there, the Commission has proposed a number of different limits:
1 fish at 35”
1 'slot’ fish between 28”-34”
1 ‘slot’ fish between 32”-40”
Potential for a ‘slot’ fish between 30”-34” or 36”
The Chesapeake Bay fishery, which you may know is different from the ocean fishery since there are few, if any, large stripers that remain in the bay outside of spawning in the spring, has its own set of options, which are:
1 fish at 18"
2 fish at 22”
2 ‘slot’ fish between 18”-22”
2 ‘slot’ fish between 20”-24”
Option 3 - since the commercial fishery has not been overfishing, there is a set of proposed regulations that would place more of the 18% reduction on the recreational side than the commercial side. Those options are:
1 fish at 36”
1 ‘slot’ fish between 28”-33”
1 ‘slot’ fish between 32”-40”
In the Chesapeake, the proposals are:
1 fish at 19”
1 fish at 18”
2 fish at 23”
2 ‘slot’ fish between 18”-22”
2 ‘slot’ fish between 20”-23”
2 ‘slot’ fish between 22”-40”
There were a few other things discussed at the meeting, which are outlined by Capt. John McMurray, President of the American Saltwater Guides Association. Capt. McMurray sits on the ASMFC Striped Bass Advisory Panel and is Legislative Proxy at ASMFC for Senator Phil Boyle. Take a read through for the ASGA’s views on what happened and a bit more detail on where we stand in striped bass management.