New data indicate that the numbers of juvenile fish that die in shrimp trawling activities in North Carolina approach and may exceed the total US east coast harvest of these fishes.
Think about that for a second.
For years, North Carolina has been the only state in the Southeast to allow inshore netting. Nets are indiscriminate killers and have a profound negative impact when used in our estuaries. Fortunately, the NC Marine Fisheries Commission recently voted to protect North Carolina’s inshore waters designating them as secondary nursery areas, which will give the Marine Fisheries the power to regulate the netting equipment moving forward.
This is just the first step in a long rulemaking process. The MFC attorney predicted it could be May 2018 before any new rules are implemented. There are many hurdles that will have to be overcome along the process to reach the final goal of reducing bycatch in the shrimp trawl industry and provide additional habitat protection in North Carolina’s estuarine waters.
LINK (via: The News & Observer)
