A traditional way of fishing in North Carolina's extensive inland and near-shore waters is under threat because of its impacts on an already endangered species.
The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries has proposed a temporary closure of large-mesh gill net fishing from May 15 through Dec. 15 for most areas south of Orgeon Inlet – including the Cape Fear River south of Snow's Cut – as it struggles to balance the popular and economically important fishing practice with federal rules protecting sea turtles.
The National Marine Fisheries Service has called the growing number of interactions between sea turtles and fishermen in the state's inshore waters “excessive and unacceptable,” and the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center in Topsail Beach could soon move the matter into federal court.