Saving Seafood

NORTH CAROLINA: Pamlico Sound fishermen push back on proposed military training expansion

October 15, 2026 — Commercial fishermen in North Carolina are pushing back against a proposed expansion of military training operations in Pamlico Sound, warning that additional restricted waters could limit access to productive fishing grounds and interfere with navigation.

According to reporting by Carolina Coast Online, the proposal from Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point would increase aircraft and unmanned systems operations, add watercraft operations, and expand restricted waters around two longtime bombing targets in Pamlico Sound.

The proposal is currently undergoing a federal consistency review by the North Carolina Division of Coastal Management (DCM), which must determine whether the project complies with the state’s coastal management laws and regulations.

The plan would expand the existing intermittent restricted waters surrounding Bombing Target 9 at Brant Island Shoal and Bombing Target 11 on Piney Island, effectively connecting the two areas into a single restricted zone stretching more than nine miles across Pamlico Sound near the mouths of the Neuse and Bay rivers.

Project documents acknowledge that activating the expanded area could “impede navigation or interfere with access or use of public trust areas or estuarine waters.” The documents do not, however, define how frequently the proposed “intermittent” restrictions would be put in place. The Navy would issue Notices to Mariners before closing the larger area to non-military users.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

North Carolina fisheries commission forces a gillnet ban

March 19, 2019 — North Carolina’s commercial fishermen are bracing for a fight over actions taken by the state’s Marine Fisheries Commissioners that forced a ban on the use of all gillnets in the Neuse and Pamlico Rivers.

The controversial action was a follow-up to a February meeting where a no-possession limit of striped bass was put into place, which is essentially a closed-season for both commercial and recreational fishermen in Central Southern Management Area of the state. At the same meeting, the commission requested that Department of Marine Fisheries Director Steve Murphey issue an additional proclamation restricting the use of all gillnets in the Neuse and Pamlico Rivers. Murphey chose not to issue the proclamation.

In a March 4 letter to the commission, Murphey wrote that he carefully considered the issue but concluded that scientific data does not support the management measure.

“While I respect the concerns of both the public and the MFC, after careful consideration I have concluded that such a measure is not supported by the scientific data that support gill nets as the primary or even the most significant source of discard mortality,” he wrote.

Gill nets are not the primary or even the most significant source of discard mortality in the Central Southern Management Area striped bass fishery, according to the department.

“This letter and Supplement A acknowledge discards in both the recreational and commercial industry, but it also points out that gill net restrictions already in place have resulted in significant reductions in striped bass discards and that recreational discards are increasing in recent years,” said Murphey.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

NORTH CAROLINA: Fishermen find foot-long shrimp in their nets

November 1, 2018 — Asian tiger shrimp are not necessarily a new commodity to the area, with sightings recorded by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in eight North Carolina watersheds.

An invasive species, the shrimp are native to East Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Philippines and Australia.

They appear different from shrimp native to the area, with their rusty brown color and black-and-white banding across their tail. Sometimes, the stripe appears as a reddish-orange stripe, stated USGS.

And their size is typically larger than the white shrimp harvested by local fishermen — tiger shrimp can reach up to 30 cm, or 11.8 inches, almost a foot long.

But, their appearance is making waves on social media for some fishermen in the area.

Spotted in Eastern North Carolina, including the Cape Fear River, Neuse River, White Oak River, New River and Pamlico Sound, fishermen have been catching the shellfish and serving them up.

John Mallette, a fisherman from Sneads Ferry, wrote in a message to The Daily News that he’s seen more of the striped species while shrimping lately, but they are not plentiful.

“I probably catch six or eight (tiger) shrimp for every 6,000 pounds of regular white shrimp,” Mallette wrote.

But, he said the rare catch makes for a yummy dinner — which can be split like a butterfly and cooked like a lobster.

“They’re delicious,” Mallette wrote. “We eat them all the time… I butterfly (them), pan fry, and toss in teriyaki sauce like a chicken wing.”

Mallette posted a photo of the giant shrimp — which nearly matched the size of his hand — and garnered over 100 shares on Facebook.

Kathy Mathis, formerly of Carteret County, was one of the people who shared the post to a Sneads Ferry group.

Read the full story at The Daily News