During the meeting May 24-26 in Beaufort, N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission members are scheduled to vote on and suspending a rule that would help to protect shellfish and amendments to striped mullet and spotted seatrout management plans.
The fish swimming in the coastal waters of North Carolina belong to the people they're a public resource. But how the state balances the use of that resource by commercial and recreational fishermen is a contentious issue, made more difficult by the challenge of accurately tracking how many fish are in the water.
The Coastal Conservation Association of North Carolina is suing the state for allegedly mismanaging a public resource that is, fish. The organization notes that the state's fishery management program began as an economic development agency, which has colored its approach since then.
For years, the state of North Carolina has struggled to balance economic interests, environmental concerns, and the public's right to recreational access to natural resources that is, fish. The issue is complicated by the difficulty of knowing the exact status of many of the state's most popular fish species. On this episode, WHQR's Grace Vitaglione unpacks months of reporting to try and get to the bottom of things.
JACKSONVILLE, N.C. (WNCT) – The Division of Marine Fisheries just wrapped up its public scoping period for Spotted Sea Trout management options. A series of four meetings took place across Eastern North Carolina to help the Division develop a plan to stop the overfishing they say is occurring with the species. The Division of Marine […]