NCFA Archives - Page 2 of 3

Coast Guard to use air units in search for local fishing crew

May 25, 2017 — The search resumes Thursday for three men lost at sea when their fishing boat capsized as a result of a reported tornado.

Hobo Seafood, which owns the capsized boat, Miss Debbie, put out a notice Thursday morning saying the search Wednesday – which was Day 2 of searching – was unfruitful largely due to uncooperative weather.

“Weather has been too rough for divers to inspect the fishing vessel, but they are using other means for the search,” Hobo Seafood put out in a statement. The company is owned by Swan Quarter residents Lee and Madge Williams.

The names of the three men who were crewing the Miss Debbie have not been released; however, Jerry Schill, the director of government affairs at the North Carolina Fisheries Association, said two of the three men were locals from the Swan Quarter area.

Read the full story at WCTI

NORTH CAROLINA: Tale of two sides: Opponents, backers of shrimp trawling petition weigh in

February 23, 2017 — NEW BERN, N.C. — A fishing industry advocacy group said the proposed state regulations in a recently approved petition could sink shrimp trawling in North Carolina, but a recreational fishermen’s environmental nonprofit thinks shrimping will just need to change.

Representatives from the N.C. Fisheries Association, a nonprofit industry group that advocates for the state seafood industry, and the North Carolina branch of the Coastal Conservation Association, an interstate nonprofit dedicated to protecting the coastal environment, spoke Tuesday to a crowd of about 84 people at the regular meeting of the Coastal Carolina Taxpayer’s Association at the Stanly Hall Ballroom. The association invited them to provide their opinions on the petition for rulemaking approved Thursday by the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission.

Jerry Schill, NCFA executive director, said the association thinks the proposed special secondary nursery areas are the biggest problem with the petition’s proposed rules.

“The people who created this petition, they don’t understand the history of the (shrimp trawl bycatch) issue,” he said. “The fishing industry created nursery areas in the 1970s. In the 1980s, the term ‘bycatch’ came up. Now we have turtle excluder devices in shrimp trawls and sea turtles have rebounded. Finfish bycatch is still an issue, but bycatch reduction devices are being used.”

Read the full story at the Carteret County News-Times

North Carolina Fisheries Association files legal complaint over southern flounder rule process

September 30, 2016 — For the second time in recent years, entities representing commercial fishermen have taken to the courts to fight fisheries regulations.

The North Carolina Fisheries Association, a New Bern-based trade association representing commercial fishermen, announced that commercial fishermen have joined with several coastal counties in filing a legal complaint against the state over the process used in adopting new regulations for the southern flounder fishery.

The North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission adopted stricter management measures for the fishery in November as a supplement to the state’s Southern Flounder Management Plan.

While the practical effect of the lawsuit would stop the closure of recreational and commercial flounder fisheries to take effect this fall, the concern raised by the NCFA has been over the use of the supplement process rather than the amendment process, which is a longer, more-involved process that allows for greater public input.

“Filing a lawsuit is the last resort for us,” said Brent Fulcher, chairman of the NCFA board of directors, via a news release announcing the litigation. “We testified many times last year before the Marine Fisheries Commission that using the supplement is the wrong approach and should be managed by a full-blown amendment that allows full public participation. Our advice was totally ignored.”

In a June 2015 report by The Daily News, NCFA President Jerry Schill called the supplement process used “quick and dirty.”

Schill said at the time that the amendment process includes a review by a committee of various stakeholders who make recommendations to the MFC on a management strategy. The process can take a year or so but allows for more scrutiny.

Supporters of the new rules, many recreational fishermen, however, cited stock status reports and said the southern flounder fishery is depleted and action was needed.

It’s not the first time the NCFA has felt the need in recent years to take legal action over fishery regulations.

Read the full story from Jacksonville Daily News

NORTH CAROLINA: Counties Join Commercial Fishermen in Lawsuit

September 27, 2016 — The following was released by the North Carolina Fisheries Association:

Several coastal counties have joined with commercial fishermen in litigation against the State of North Carolina regarding last year’s decision by the Marine Fisheries Commission to adopt new regulations on the southern flounder fishery by using the “Supplement” process. Stevenson Weeks, an attorney with Wheatly, Wheatly, Weeks, Lupton & Massie of Beaufort and Todd Roessler attorney with Kilpatrick, Townsend & Stockton of Raleigh, are representing the plaintiffs. The complaint was filed today in Carteret County Superior Court.

The plaintiffs include the North Carolina Fisheries Association, Inc.; Carteret County Fisherman’s Association, Inc.; County of Carteret; County of Dare; County of Hyde.

Defendants served with the complaint are the Secretary of the Department of Environmental Quality, Director of the Division of Marine Fisheries and all members of the Marine Fisheries Commission.

The practical effect of the litigation is to stop the closure of the recreational and commercial southern flounder fisheries, scheduled to take effect this fall.

Brent Fulcher, Board Chairman of the North Carolina Fisheries Association, said “Filing a lawsuit is the last resort for us. We testified many times last year before the Marine Fisheries Commission that using the supplement is the wrong approach and should be managed by a full-blown amendment that allows full public participation. Our advice was totally ignored.”

“In my 29 years of involvement with these fisheries issues, this is only the second time that we filed litigation against the Division of Marine Fisheries”, said Jerry Schill, President of the Fisheries Association. “Fishermen must have confidence in the process for management to be successful, but with the Commission and the Division ignoring the law and even their own guidelines, we have no other option left.”

The 30-page complaint alleges the management measures made by the defendants were arbitrary and based on inadequate scientific data using an abbreviated regulatory process and did so in violation of the North Carolina Open Meetings Laws.

North Carolina Fisheries Association – Weekly Update for March 28, 2016

March 29, 2016 — The following was released by the North Carolina Fisheries Association:

CARTERET COUNTY FISHERMEN’S ASSOCIATION is meeting on Saturday, April 9th at 6:30pm in Marshallberg. The group will be planning their annual Fish Fry scheduled for May, among some other things.

================================================================

SKIMMER TRAWLS:

Last week we listed information about potential new regs for skimmer trawls. For those of you who use skimmer trawls, you will receive a mailing from us in the next couple of days about this issue.

PLEASE TAKE THE TIME TO READ IT!

After looking it over, contact us at the office or an NCFA Board member about your thoughts as we will be discussing the subject at our Board meeting next Monday in Washington. The list of Board members and their phone numbers is listed in the mailing. If you’d like to attend the Board meeting, feel free to do so and participate in the discussion. The meeting begins at noon at the Civic Center in Washington NC.

For more info, contact NCFA’s biologist, David Bush: (910) 777-1605, or by email.

NOAA Fisheries hosts public meetings in April to discuss potential skimmer trawl regulations in Southeast US:

NOAA Fisheries is considering new regulations in the shrimp fishery of the southeastern United States based on information indicating sea turtles are vulnerable to capture by skimmer trawls and tow times may not be as effective in reducing bycatch-related mortality as turtle excluder devices. The agency will host five public meetings around the region to discuss and receive input from fishermen and other constituents on alternatives to reduce sea turtle bycatch and mortality.

These public meetings are the first stage in a multi-step process required by the National Environmental Policy Act to ensure that Federal agencies evaluate the environmental impacts of major Federal actions. During these meetings, the public is provided with an opportunity to assist us in determining the scope of issues that require analysis. The analysis of issues and the environmental impacts of the proposed actions will be presented in a draft Environmental Impact Statement, which will be made available for public comment. The notice of intent to prepare the draft statement will be published in the Federal Register on March 15, 2016.

Additionally, we prepared a scoping document and a list of frequently asked questions as aids to the public on the upcoming scoping process. These documents are available on the NOAA Fisheries website at: http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/protected_resources/index.html. The scoping document describes the major issues, current management and legal requirements, and identifies potential management measures to reduce interactions, and in particular, lethal interactions, between sea turtles and trawl fisheries.

There are several meetings being held but the North Carolina meeting is:

Morehead City, NC — April 13, 2016, 2 p.m. – 4 p.m., Crystal Coast Civic Center.

Scoping comments may also be submitted during a concurrent 45-day comment period. When they publish the draft EIS, it will also have a 45-day public comment period.

=================================================================

FROM THE DIVISION OF MARINE FISHERIES:

State seeking public comment on management options required to improve blue crab stock

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries is accepting public comment on management options for the blue crab fishery. The management measures are required under Amendment 2 to the N.C. Blue Crab Fishery Management Plan to improve the condition of the state’s blue crab stock.

Division staff will discuss the possible management measures and receive public comment at the following upcoming advisory committee meetings:

Southern Regional Advisory Committee

April 6, 5:30 p.m.

DMF Central District Office; Morehead City

Northern Regional Advisory Committee

April 7, 5:30 p.m.

DEQ Washington Regional Office; 943 Washington Square Mall, Washington

Shellfish/Crustacean Advisory Committee

April 14. 6 p.m.

DMF Central District Office; Morehead City

Additionally, comments can be directed by phone to division biologists Jason Rock at 252-948-3874 or Corrin Flora at 252-264-3911, or by email to Jason.Rock@ncdenr.gov or Corrin.Flora@ncdenr.gov.

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission is scheduled to consider management action at its May meeting. Possible management options include:

* Increasing the minimum size limit for male and immature female crabs

* Establishing a seasonal size limit on peeler crabs

* Reducing the tolerance of sub-legal size blue crabs to a minimum of 5 percent and/or implementing gear modifications to reduce sublegal catch

* Eliminating the harvest of v-apron immature hard crab females

* Restricting the harvest of sponge crabs

* Prohibiting all harvest of sponge crabs and/or requiring sponge crab excluders in pots in specific areas

* Closing the crab spawning sanctuaries from Sept. 1 to Feb. 28 and possibly imposing further restriction

* Expanding existing and/or designating new crab spawning sanctuaries

* Closing the fishery by season and/or gear

* Gear modifications in the crab trawl fishery

Management measures will be implemented by proclamation following the commission’s May meeting.

Management action is required under Amendment 2 to the N.C. Blue Crab Fishery Management Plan, adopted by the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission in November 2013. Amendment 2 uses an adaptive management framework based on the condition of the Blue Crab Traffic Light, which requires annual evaluation of three indicators to determine if any change in management is warranted. The indicators are adult abundance, the abundance of juvenile crabs in the stock (recruit abundance), and production (which evaluates the reproductive potential or resilience of the stock).

The annual evaluation has been completed, and management thresholds have been exceeded, requiring management action.

For more information, go to http://portal.ncdenr.org/web/mf/home under “Hot Topics.”

SOUTHERN FLOUNDER:

Thanks to those of you who have contributed to our Southern Flounder Fund. Those funds will be used exclusively for issues related to southern flounder, either legally or other avenues to address the situation.

If you have not yet contributed, please do so ASAP!

Send your donations to:

NCFA

2807 Neuse Blvd; Suite 11

New Bern, NC 28562

Please make your check out to NCFA/Southern Flounder Fund or to the NC Fisheries Association and be sure to put Southern Flounder Fund in the memo.

==============================================================

CALENDAR

Apr 4; Noon; NCFA Board meeting; Civic Center; Washington NC

Apr 6; 5:30pm; MFC Southern Advisory Cmte; DMF office; Morehead City

Apr 7; 5:30pm; MFC Northern Advisory Cmte; DEQ office; Washington

Apr 9; 6:30pm; Carteret County Fishermen’s Association; Marshallberg

Apr 11; 6:00pm; Oyster/Hard Clam Advisors; DMF office; Morehead City

Apr 12-14; MAFMC meeting in Montauk, NY

Apr 13; 2:00-4:00pm; Skimmer Trawl meeting; Civic Center; Morehead City

Apr 13; 5:30pm; Finfish Advisors; DEQ office; Washington

Apr 14; 6:00pm; Shellfish/Crustacean Advisors; DMF office; Morehead City

Apr 25; North Carolina General Assembly convenes for the Short Session

May 2-5; ASMFC Spring Meeting; Westin; Alexandria, VA

May 18-20; MFC meeting; Civic Center; Morehead City

View a PDF of the Weekly Update

North Carolina Fisheries Association Weekly Update for March 14, 2016

March 15, 2016 — The following was released by the North Carolina Fisheries Association:

KENDALYN ROSE LEWIS:

As noted in a separate message yesterday, Capt. Kenny Lewis and his wife Lynda, lost their daughter, Kendalyn Rose, earlier this week. Words cannot begin to express our sadness and disbelief at the loss of a vibrant young lady who was known and loved by so many. Please keep the family in your thoughts and prayers. Visitation will be on Wednesday, March 16th, from 6:00 till 8:00pm at the Munden Funeral Home in Morehead City. The funeral service will be on Thursday, March 17th, at 2:00pm at the funeral home.

May her soul and the souls of all of the faithful departed, rest in peace.

BLUELINE TILEFISH:

Below is part of an article that is on the NC Coastal Federation website about commercial fishermen donating to a local food pantry. Dewey Hemilright, an NCFA Board member, is one of those fishermen.

You can see the entire Coastal Federation article here: http://www.nccoast.org/2016/03/paying-it-forward-in-blueline-tilefish/

Here are some excerpts from the article:

Blueline tilefish are commercially harvested off the N.C. coast, provide lean, white meat and delicately flavor.

Several commercial fishermen from the Outer Banks have been paying it forward this winter with donations of fish to a local food pantry. Buddy Coppersmith (F/V Emily Shay), Jimmy Taylor (F/V Windy Gale), and Dewey Hemilright (F/V Tar Baby), have been commercial fishermen for most of their lives. Recently, they’ve been working under a cooperative research grant collecting data that will improve future stock assessments for blueline tilefish.

Hemilright, an avid community outreach volunteer with the Coastal Federation’s office in Manteo is well-known for leading education lessons for students and adults and was recognized for his outstanding contributions to the Coastal Federation’s northeast education program with a Pelican Award in 2015.

While participating in the cooperative research project to gather fisheries- independent data on blueline tilefish and snowy grouper, the fishermen were sent out to fish and collect samples. Since the fishermen were receiving payment through the cooperative research grant, they could not sell their catch. Nor did they want to see it go to waste, and so sought out other options for it.

HEARINGS FOR BLUELINE TILEFISH:

And speaking of blueline tilefish, there are some hearings coming up about it. From the Mid Atlantic Council:

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council is soliciting public input on a draft amendment to address management and conservation of blueline tilefish in the Mid-Atlantic. Four public hearings will be held between March 21 and March 29, 2016. Written comments will be accepted until Wednesday, March 30, 2016.

The draft amendment considers adding blueline tilefish (Caulolatilus microps) as a managed species in the Golden Tilefish Fishery Management Plan, effectively turning that plan into the Golden and Blueline Tilefish Fishery Management Plan. The management measures proposed in the amendment are needed to constrain fishing mortality on the blueline tilefish stock and effectively manage the blueline tilefish fishery in waters off the Mid-Atlantic and New England coasts.

Additional information and documents, including a public hearing document (to be posted by March 14), may be obtained from http://www.mafmc.org/actions/blueline-tilefish.

Members of the public are invited to comment on any aspect of the draft amendment. Following a review of comments received, the Council will choose preferred management measures and submit the Amendment to the Secretary of Commerce for approval and publication of proposed and final rules, both of which have additional comment periods.

For more information, contact Jason Didden at (302) 526-5254 or jdidden@mafmc.org.

Hearings for our area are listed below in the Calendar section.

SOUTHERN FLOUNDER:

If you have not yet contributed, please do so ASAP!

Send your donations to:

NCFA 2807 Neuse Blvd; Suite 11

New Bern, NC 28562

Please make your check out to NCFA/Southern Flounder Fund or to the NC Fisheries Association and be sure to put Southern Flounder Fund in the memo.

God bless, Jerry

CALENDAR

Mar 17; 4:00pm; MFC Sea Turtle Advisors; DEQ office; Washington, NC

Mar 21; 6:00pm; Blueline tilefish; Dare County Admin Bldg; Manteo

Mar 22; 7:00pm; Blueline tilefish; Hilton Oceanfront; Virginia Beach

Apr 4; Noon; NCFA Board meeting; Civic Center; Washington NC

Apr 6; 5:30pm; MFC Southern Advisory Cmte; DMF office; Morehead City

Apr 7; 5:30pm; MFC Northern Advisory Cmte; DEQ office; Washington

Apr 11; 6:00pm; Oyster/Hard Clam Advisors; DMF office; Morehead City

Apr 12-14; MAFMC meeting in Montauk, NY

Apr 14; 6:00pm; Shellfish/Crustacean Advisors; DMF office; Morehead City

Apr 25; North Carolina General Assembly convenes for the Short Session

May 2-5; ASMFC Spring Meeting; Westin; Alexandria, VA

May 18-20; MFC meeting; Civic Center; Morehead City

View a PDF of the Weekly Update

North Carolina Fisheries Association Releases Weekly Update for March 7, 2016

March 7, 2016 — The following was released by the North Carolina Fisheries Association:

INFO NEEDED!

Thanks to the efforts of Aundrea O’Neal at Beaufort Inlet Seafood, NCFA now has the information needed to plug into our database for vital information for those fishermen who pack at that facility. Our biologist, David Bush, needs that information to quantify how regulations may impact fishermen. For example, our new database will include the fishermen’s name, address, phone, email if any, gear type used, areas fished and targeted species.

Whether it’s to assess potential regulations or to fight what we perceive as overzealous regulations by state and/or federal regulators, we need this data to make it easier for David to compile it.

We appeal to you to make this information available, so if you need more information, please contact Aundrea at Beaufort Inlet Seafood and she’ll tell you how it’s done. Her contact info is: Beaufort Inlet Seafood: (252) 504-2036 Cell: (252) 503-8302

MONKFISH & REGULATIONS:

Monkfish, or the “poor man’s lobster” is really good! For those that appreciate monkfish but can’t find it at your favorite fish market, consider this:

Last week I was in Dare County and one of the meetings I attended was the monkfish meeting on Thursday evening at the DMF office in Manteo. There were a total of 4 at the meeting: 3 DMF employees and me. One might wonder why fishermen aren’t taking the time to attend an information meeting about monkfish. Consider this: by law, they can only fish for about 4 weeks in March/April. They can only fish between 2 & 3 miles in the ocean. It’s illegal to fish for monkfish in federal waters, which begins at the 3 mile mark. They can only fish if the water temps are under 52 degrees.

Rationale? Not so much for monkfish, but “other issues”, such as sea turtles. If the temps are above 52 degrees, there is a better possibility of interaction with sea turtles, so the fishery closes. Inside of 2 miles there is a possibility of interaction with marine mammals.

Point being this: with the restrictions outlined above, there is not much of an incentive for a fishermen to target monkfish. As a result, the landings will be minimal in North Carolina, not because there aren’t any monkfish, but because there is not an adequate economic incentive to fish for them. Those who are always proclaiming that the sky is falling will then cite the declining landings and allege that commercial fishermen are catching them all! It’s a vicious cycle that is not unique to monkfish!

Meanwhile, a rash of letters to the editor recently allege that commercial fishermen in North Carolina have few regulations!

SOUTHERN FLOUNDER:

If you have not yet contributed, please do so ASAP!

Send your donations to:

NCFA

2807 Neuse Blvd; Suite 11

New Bern, NC 28562

Please make your check out to NCFA/Southern Flounder Fund or to the NC Fisheries Association and be sure to put Southern Flounder Fund in the memo.

God bless, Jerry

===========================================================

CALENDAR

Mar 7-11 SAFMC meeting in Jekyll Island, GA

Mar 17; 4:00pm; MFC Sea Turtle Advisors; DEQ office; Washington, NC

Apr 12-14; MAFMC meeting in Montauk, NY

View a PDF of the weekly update

North Carolina Fisheries Association Releases Catch Summit info

March 2, 2016 — One final reminder about the NC Catch Summit coming up next week! This appeal is for all fishermen and interested folks. The Secretary of DEQ, the Deputy Secretary and the Acting Director of the Division of Marine Fisheries will be in attendance at the Clambake on Monday night!!

Please try to attend the Clambake and/or the event during the day on Tuesday in Beaufort. There is no charge for attending!

The Dinner & the Summit are completely free but you have to register (for the head count) at: email:

rjohnson@hydecountync.gov

or call Rosemary Johnson at 252.926.4474.

Monday * March 7 * Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center; Harkers Island

5:30-8:30 Carteret Catch Down East Clambake & Frogmore Stew Dinner

Speaker: Wes Stepp, owner of Red Sky Cafe & author of “Tastefully Fit”

*Free trolley service will be available from the Beaufort Inn to the Museum

Tuesday * March 8 * Auditorium, NC Maritime Museum, 315 Front Street; Beaufort

8:30-9:00 Registration * Coffee & pastries

9:00-9:15 Host Welcome * Pam Morris, President, Carteret Catch

Conference Welcome * Jimmy Johnson, President, NC Catch

9:15-10:00 NC Commercial Fisheries: Economic Values, Trends, & Growth Potential

Presenter: Dr. Jane Harrison, Coastal Economics Specialist, North Carolina Sea Grant

10:00-10:15 Break

10:15-11:00 Sett ing Seafood Trends: How Chefs Do It

Moderator: Libby Eaton, Bistro-By-The-Sea

Panelists: Jeff Barney, Saxapahaw General Store; Wes Stepp, Red Sky Cafe; and Sandy Howard, Amos Mosquitos

11:00-11:45 Ocracoke Island: A Case Study of Successful Seafood Tourism

Moderator: Alton Ballance, NCCAT

Panelists: Hardy & Patt y Plyler, Ocracoke Fish Company; Vince O’ Neal, Pony Island Restaurant; TBA

11:45-12:30 Diamonds in the Rough: Local Success Stories

Moderator: Jess Hawkins, Carolina Eco-Tours

Panelists: Eddie & Alison Willis, Mr. Big/Core Sound Seafood; Fabian Botta, Ruddy Duck Tavern; and Mark Hooper, Hooper Family Seafood

12:30-2:00 Lunch – Generously sponsored by Carteret-Craven Electric Cooperative

2:00-2:45 Cultivating Customers: Insights from Retail Seafood Markets

Moderator: John Day, Center for Environmental Farming Systems, NC State University

Panelists: Haag & Son’s Seafood; Fishtowne Seafood; TBA

2:45-3:00 Break

3:00-3:45 NC Seafood: It Tastes Great & It’s Good for You Too!

Presenters: Dr. David Green, NCSU; Candace Morris, ECU graduate student; and Sue Way, East Carteret High School

3:45:4:00 2016 NC Catch Summit Conclusion: Pam Morris and Jimmy Johnson

4:00-4:30 Networking and information tables available

Fishermen, restaurant, retail & wholesale folks who are able are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity and attend part or all of it. There are accommodations available at Beaufort Inn (1.800.726.0321) at a very reasonable rate, if needed.

View a PDF of the Catch Summit poster

NCFA Special update: New River/Camp Lejeune; Ginger Shackelford

UPDATE ON THE MEETING IN SNEADS FERRY CONCERNING THE K-2 RANGE

The Marine Corps held an Open House public meeting to provide information on unexploded ordnance safety risks and a proposal to LIMIT PUBLIC ACTIVITIES IN THE WATERS adjacent to the K-2 Range at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune.

Jerry attended the “Open House” and talked to a lot of folks: fishermen, Camp Lejeune employees and some contractors who will do the clean up if that’s the route they go.

The military cannot restrict, only the Corps of Engineers has that authority after a recommendation from Camp Lejeune. Even then federal law states: “…that the authority conferred shall be so exercised as not unreasonably to interfere with or restrict the food fishing industry……”

NCFA will be offering written comments and also staying in touch with our congressional folks on this issue. They will be doing on Environmental Assessment that includes more opportunity for public comment.

Public comment will be accepted until February 9, 2016. To comment by email, send to comments@K2RangeProject.com, or by mail to:
Cardno
501 Butler Farm Rd; Suite H
Hampton, VA 23666

For more information, visit the website: www.K2RangeProject.com

==============================================================

FUND RAISING EFFORTS FOR GINGER SHACKELFORD

Ginger is the 18 year old daughter of Britton and Audra Shackelford of Manteo and is battling cancer. There was a fish fry last evening in Nags Head, which NCFA’s David Bush attended. We encourage you to donate to the family to help with the tremendous expenses. Make your check out to Britton Shackelford and send to:
303 Ananias Dare St.
Manteo, NC 27954
==============================================================
BERNIE MCCANTS REMOVES HIS NAME FROM CONSIDERATION
for the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council seat. Jack Cox currently holds that seat and we learned recently that he has removed his name from consideration due to business & personal obligations. This seat has historically gone to someone from the commercial fishing side, while the other seat has gone to recreational. The recreational seat is currently held by Anna Beckwith.
===============================================================
SUMMER FLOUNDER LANDINGS WINDOW EXTENDED

The current window for landing summer flounder under a North Carolina permit has been extended till 6:00pm on February 3rd. The trip limits are as follows:
summer flounder: 12,500 pounds
black sea bass: 1,500 pounds

The next window will open at 12:01am on February 4th and will close at 6:00pm on March 3rd with the following trip limits:
summer flounder: 10,000 pounds
black sea bass: 1,250 pounds

For more information, see the proclamations here:
Summer flounder
Black sea bass
==============================================================
CALENDAR

Feb 2-4     ASMFC Winter meeting; Alexandria VA
Feb 9-11   MAFMC meeting in New Bern NC
Feb 17-19 NC MFC meeting in Wrightsville Beach, NC
Mar 7-11   SAFMC meeting in Jekyll Island, GA

NCFA Weekly Update for January 25, 2016

January 25, 2016 — The following was released by the North Carolina Fisheries Association (NCFA):

WEEKLY UPDATE: 1/25/2016
NORTH CAROLINA FISHERIES ASSOCIATION
“Serving the Commercial Fishing Families of North Carolina since 1952”
Phone: (252) 633-NCFA (6232)
www.ncfish.org

Jerry Schill, President: jerryschill@ncfish.org; ext. 100
David Bush, Fisheries Biologist: davidbush@ncfish.org; ext. 102
Peggy Page, Accounting: peggy@ncfish.org; ext. 103

NOTE: Since this update is already very lengthy, we will send out a supplement to this tomorrow. In it, we will include information on:

* The Sneads Ferry Open House by Camp Lejeune about the K-2Range New River. Jerry attended and will give an update;

* Fundraising efforts for Ginger Shackelford, daughter of Britton and AudraShackelford, who is fighting cancer.

* Calendar of events & meetings coming up.

ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING recap:

Congratulations to Sonny Davis & Glen Skinner of Carteret County and Joey Daniels of Dare County, as the newest members of the Board of Directors!!

The following were elected as officers of the Board:

Chairman: Brent Fulcher
Vice Chairman: Glen Skinner
Treasurer: Leslie Daniels
President & Corporate Secretary: Jerry Schill

After a lengthy discussion on southern flounder, including comments from attorney Steve Weeks, the following motion was approved by the membership:

To pursue administrative, legal and legislative options;

To create a southern flounder fund for the purpose of challenging the NC Marine Fisheries Commission’s decision on southern flounder in November 2015 and expose the illegal actions of the commission.

The motion requires that NCFA staff exhaust all efforts to resolve the problems associated with the illegal decision made by the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission regarding southern flounder. To that end, NCFA will establish a “Southern Flounder Fund” that will be set aside to pay for costs associated with this effort. Those costs may be legal, public relations or communications Contributions to this fund will not be used for administrative costs. More details will be included in a press release in a few days.

NCFA’s membership also agreed to:

* Assure that the current definition of a commercial fisherman remains as is;

* Reaffirm its opposition to catch shares or individual quotas.

SOUTHERN SHRIMP ALLIANCE & SHRIMP IMPORTS:

John Williams, Executive Director of SSA presented an overview of the history of SSA and their efforts and successes in curbing the importation of shrimp being “dumped” into US markets.

The Southern Shrimp Alliance (SSA) is an organization of shrimp fishermen, shrimp processors, and other members of the domestic industry in the eight warmwater shrimp producing states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas.

Founded in 2002, the SSA works to ensure the continued vitality and existence of the U.S. shrimp industry. The livelihoods of U.S. shrimpers are threatened by cheap, unfairly traded imported shrimp. The U.S market has become a dumping ground for shrimp that are turned away from other major seafood importing countries. Proposed restrictions on shrimp fishing and rapidly increasing costs of doing business also loom over the industry. The SSA is committed to preserving the long term viability of one of our nation’s most valuable fisheries, which for decades has been a foundation of the economy and social structure of countless coastal communities throughout the Gulf and Southeast regions.

SSA is currently conducting a sunset review, which is required to determine if antidumping duties should remain for imported shrimp from certain countries. John distributed surveys for shrimpers and processors. It is very important for shrimpers and shrimp processors to participate in this survey! If not, the antidumping duties could be lifted.

We have copies at the office, so call if you want us to send you one or more. Or you can contact John Williams of the Southern Shrimp Alliance directly: John@shrimpalliance.com or call: 727-934-5090.

Jerry’s comments:

I would like to add my personal thanks and congratulations to those who were re-elected to NCFA’s Board, and to Sonny Davis, Glen Skinner & Joey Daniels for their willingness to serve. Special kudos to Brent Fulcher, Glen Skinner and Leslie Daniels as officers. It takes a significant amount of time to serve on our Board as we meet monthly, and the meetings are not short! They all deserve the gratitude of everyone involved with commercial fishing and those who support it.

In addition, I appreciate the support of the Board in appointing me to continue for another year as President and Corporate Secretary. It’s a role that I don’t take lightly, and offer my assurances that we will do our utmost to address the challenges facing the industry and assure that commercial fishermen will have a future in North Carolina.

It was very gratifying to see the excellent turnout for our annual meeting, and speaking for David & Peggy, the staff appreciates everyone that took the time to attend our annual meeting and also the bycatch reduction workshop and the presentation by John Williams of the Southern Shrimp Alliance prior to our meeting. It was the best attendance of any annual meeting that I’ve been involved with and allows us to build upon that energy for the coming year. David & Peggy spent a considerable amount of time in preparation for the day’s events and did an outstanding job!

There is one issue that I would like to mention here concerning the Annual Meeting. I would like to expand on the comments I made at the meeting regarding 2015. When reviewing the last year, it’s hard to jump up and down with joy. Would you agree? I made the statement that in my 29 years of being involved, it was the harshest to commercial fishing that I can remember. My purpose in saying that was not to depress everyone, as I’m sure everyone agreed that last year was a tough one, but to let those involved in commercial fishing know that we, meaning the staff at NCFA, feel it too. We are not oblivious to the negative effects of overzealous regulations that y’all face. While it’s our job at NCFA to promote a positive face, our members will wonder what we’ve been smoking if we don’t acknowledge the harsh climate facing fishermen!

However, I should have spent more time in speaking about the positives and how those positives can be used to approach the issues in 2016. For example, the relationship we have with the North Carolina General Assembly is the best it’s ever been. Commercial fishermen have many friends in the legislature and they’re not only from the coast. That is a benefit that is directly responsible to the effort we, and others, have put into it. Personally, I missed very few days being in Raleigh when they were in session last year. We do need to do the same for our congressional folks in Washington and we’ve been working on that, especially with Senator Burr, Senator Tillis and Congressman Rouzer. Congressman Walter Jones is staunchly in our corner but we do need to maintain that dialogue with his office so they understand our positions. Likewise, his staff keeps us informed on upcoming issues at the federal level.

We also have Tradewinds back and try to make it better with every issue. Our website and Facebook pages are being kept current thanks to Aundrea O’Neal. Using technology enables us to do our best in educating consumers. Of course, those efforts need to be expanded. For the past 2 years, we have partnered with North Carolina Watermen United and NC Catch in educational efforts at the Seafood Festival and the State Fair. We have a very good relationship with Farm Bureau as they have been a steadfast ally. And we have a Board of Directors that’s as pro-active as any I’ve seen. In the “old” days we had quarterly Board meetings. We now have monthly meetings that cover a multitude of issues.

The challenges are many, but we have a positive base to build on to address those challenges.

What we really need now is for more participation in terms of MEMBERSHIP, especially half percenters. If you commercially fish and are not a Half Percent Member, you need to be! It’s an easy way for you to do your part in addressing the issues facing commercial fishing. If you are a dealer and not participating, you need to be! The days for letting the other guy carry the load are over if you want commercial fishing to continue! We can assist you in getting started as a half percenter.

Give us a call or drop us a note. Stop by the office in New Bern. Or call one of the members of the Board. Get involved!

God bless,
Jerry

View a PDF of the release