Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission holds a series of public hearings

DELMARVA. – The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is hosting a series of public hearings on the East Coast. This aims to rebuild the striped bass stock by 2029.

This comes after projections indicated the numbers wouldn’t meet the deadline in that year.

The proposed action is to increase the probability of rebuilding the stock. They will do this by reducing fishery removals by 12% through management measures.

For commercial fishing, the draft proposes a commercial quota reduction.

Recreational fishing could face significant changes as well, the draft proposes season closures and size limits.

Thursday night at 6 p.m., at the Little Creek Education Training Center in Dover.

Another hearing is taking place on September 22nd at Chesapeake College Todd Performing Arts Center.

President Delmarva Fisheries Association, Robert Newberry, “This administration has not just left us behind, they’ve run over us with a bus and backing over us again and again,” said Newberry. “There’s an old saying by Teddy Roosevelt that says walk softly and carry a big stick. Well, here’s the big stick, and we’re gonna walk softly, but we also got what they call the big drum.”

For more information, click this link.

WMDT will have a recap of the public hearings.