At the August 2018 Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission meeting, here’s what went down By Capt. John McMurray As is the case with most ASMFC meetings, a lot happened. However, in the interest of simplification, we’re going to restrict this summary to what we think is critically important to anglers. Number one on that
Western Long Island Sound fishing tournament kicks ass for marine conservation September 28th, 29th and 30th. Put it on your calendar. The first Tightlined Slam tournament to benefit the Marine Fish Conservation Network will be occurring at Wilson Cove Marina in Norwalk, CT. Captains’ Meeting, September 28 at 7:00pm. Rules will be
On March 1, the National Marine Fisheries Service adopted emergency regulations to protect shortfin mako sharks, after a new stock assessment conducted by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) indicated that the species was severely overfished, and undergoing very severe overfishing. Such emergency regulations increased the minimum size limit for shortfin
Black sea bass, summer flounder and red snapper will likely be impacted first by new MRIP data “I can’t understand… we’ve got 350,000 anglers in New York not 900,000.” said the caller from New York when questions opened up during the July 13, 2018 webinar about the revised Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP) estimates. New
By a narrower margin, HR 200 makes it through the House. Now what? By Capt. John McMurray Well, we all expected it. HR 200, “Strengthening Fishing Communities and Increasing Flexibility in Fisheries Management Act” (A.K.A the “Empy Oceans Act”), with a few amendments, including one really bad one, sailed through the House of Representatives
When is rains, it pours in the Chesapeake Bay By Tony Friedrich Right now, the Chesapeake region is experiencing unprecedented rains. In May, Ellicott City experienced a “once in a thousand-year flood,” for the second time in two years. July 2018 saw the most rain for that month on record. Between July 19
On July 11, H.R. 200,the Strengthening Fishing Communities and Increasing Flexibility in Fisheries Management Act passed the House of Representatives. The vote on the House floor was disappointing but close – as this partisan bill passed by a vote of 222-193. To see a breakdown of how Members voted, go here. As we have told
On Wednesday, July 11, the United States House of Representatives will vote on H.R. 200, the Strengthening Fishing Communities and Increasing Flexibility in Fisheries Management Act. As we’ve written on a number of occasions, H.R. 200 is a bad bill, legislation that, if it becomes law, would substantially weaken the conservation and stock rebuilding provisions
Photo courtesy of Northeast Fisheries Science Center – NOAA By Tony Friedrich If you follow this blog, you probably know by now that the writers stand united against H.R. 200, the Strengthening Fishing Communities and Increasing Flexibility in Fisheries Management Act. We’ve written extensively about this deeply flawed legislation to make all of you
We all need to weigh in on Draft Amendment 8, and we need to do it now! By Capt. John McMurray A lot of us have been fortunate enough to have been in it when stripers were crushing big 8- to 10-inch sea herring. Those readers who’ve been around for a while know exactly what
