Saving Seafood

NORTH CAROLINA: Northeast N.C. fishermen want a voice in the science that controls their future

March 11, 2026 — When it comes to being a fisherman, it’s about much more than getting out on the water and bringing home fresh seafood. There are regulations that come into play to prevent overfishing populations in North Carolina waters.

But over the years, fishermen have questioned the stock assessments that lead to restrictions on their catch, feeling they see plenty of the regulated fish out on the water throughout the year.

“They manage us based on the results of a stock assessment. The last thing you want is for somebody to come back and say, oops, we were wrong. They put you out of work, you couldn’t send your kid to college, you couldn’t pay your mortgage,” said Glenn Skinner, executive director of the North Carolina Fisheries Association.

Skinner is a lifetime fisherman and one of a handful to voice concerns in person about stock assessments to the Marine Fisheries Commission in late February in the Outer Banks, saying the regulations impact the everyday fisherman’s bottom line.

Read the full article at WTKR

Fishing lawsuit could reshape NC’s coastal industry. Here’s the latest

March 9, 2026 — Closing arguments have been made in a case in Raleigh that could help determine the future direction of how North Carolina manages its fisheries.

But it still could be several months before the Wake County Superior Court judge makes a decision.

The Coastal Conservation Association of North Carolina is suing the state alleging that it hasn’t effectively maintained its fisheries, which are considered a natural resource to be managed for the benefit of all North Carolinians.

After several court wins for the association against moves by the state to dismiss the case, which was filed in 2020, the trial began Jan. 20.

Read the full article at Star News Online

NORTH CAROLINA: Is the NC Legislature about to take another shot at a shrimp trawling ban?

March 5, 2026 — The fishing community and many on the Outer Banks breathed a major sigh of relief in June 2025 when a NC Senate measure that would have imposed a shrimp trawling ban died in the NC House.

The hard-fought victory came after protestors opposed to the measure—which would have banned trawling in all of the state’s inland waters and within a half-mile of the Atlantic shoreline—showed up in force in Raleigh to pressure legislators. The Outer Banks Voice – Shrimp trawling ban dies in NC House this session

Read the full article at the Outer Banks Voice

States could net control of red snapper season

February 17, 2026 — The Trump administration is taking steps toward shifting regulatory authority over red snapper in Atlantic Ocean federal waters to states, a move that some state leaders have argued is necessary to sustain their sportfishing economies.

NOAA Fisheries announced Wednesday it would open a 25-day comment period on “exempted fishing permits” for Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.

The permits would allow the states to “test new data collection methods and strategies for state-led management of the recreational red snapper fishery,” the agency said.

Read the full article at E&E News

Debate grows over NOAA plan to expand snapper access

February 13, 2026 — Today, NOAA Fisheries announced that they are accepting public comments on applications for Exempted Fishing Permits (EFPs) from Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

These permits propose to extend recreational fishing seasons for vulnerable red snapper in the South Atlantic. Overfishing drove the red snapper population to just 11 percent of its historical abundance; in response, seasons were reduced as part of a rebuilding plan set to last through 2044.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

NOAA leaps forward on collaborative approach for red snapper

February 11, 2026 — NOAA Fisheries announced today a major collaborative step toward boosting red snapper recreational fishing opportunities in the South Atlantic. The agency invites public comments on applications for Exempted Fishing Permits (EFPs) from Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. The EFPs are designed to test new data collection methods and strategies for state-led management of the recreational red snapper fishery.

This 25-day public comment period marks an important step in NOAA’s review and consideration of management strategies for the recreational harvest of red snapper, which will balance sustainability and economic benefits. These actions are also expected to increase opportunities for American recreational fishermen.

Read the full article at NOAA 

NORTH CAROLINA: North Carolina fishing lawsuit could reshape state’s coastal industry

February 10, 2026 — In a courthouse 120 miles up Interstate 40 from the Wilmington coast, the future direction of the state’s commercial and recreational fishing industries could soon be decided.

A trial is underway in Raleigh alleging that the state hasn’t effectively managed its fisheries, which are considered a natural resource to be managed for the benefit of all North Carolinians.

Both the state constitution and the 1997 Fisheries Reform Act bound North Carolina to rebuild any fishing stocks that get depleted, which has led the state to get involved in managing several commercially and recreationally important species, including flounder, shrimp, blue crab and striped bass.

But fishery groups and others have complained for years that the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries has failed to adequately do this, leading the Coastal Conservation Association of North Carolina to sue the state in 2020.

After several court wins for the association against moves by the state to dismiss the case, the trial began Jan. 20.

“After more than five years of fighting to save our fisheries, we are very grateful for this day, when the future of this constitutionally protected, public-trust resource will finally get its day in court,” said David Sneed, the association’s executive director, in a news release. “We look forward to proving our case on the merits and ensuring that a legacy of sustainable coastal fisheries will be there for all our children and grandchildren.”

Read the full article at Star News Online

Critically endangered right whale found dead off NC coast

February 2, 2026 — A critically endangered North Atlantic right whale that a team of responders attempted to disentangle from fishing gear nearly two months ago was found dead earlier this week off the North Carolina coast.

The 4-year-old male, identified as “Division,” died from injuries caused by being entangled.

An aerial survey team on Tuesday spotted what was left of Division’s carcass floating about 25 miles offshore of Avon, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

On Dec. 4, 2025, responders from NOAA Fisheries, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission took to the sea to join forces with a Georgia-based aerial survey team from Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute in an effort to document Division’s entanglement and monitor his behavior.

Read the full article at the CoastalReview.org

NORTH CAROLINA: North Carolina Coastal Federation seeks commercial fishers for recovery project

January 30, 2026 — The North Carolina Coastal Federation is asking more commercial fishers to enlist in its Lost Fishing Gear Recovery Project to locate and collect lost crab pots.

The Federation kicked off the project in January. For 12 years, the Federation worked in cooperation with the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) to remove lost crab pots from the North Carolina sounds and waterways.

“Every year, crab pots and other fishing gear are lost in our sounds in a variety of ways. Lost gear can get hung up or drift into channels, creating serious hazards for boaters, wildlife, and fishermen,” Federation representatives wrote in a press release.

Commercial fishers are hired to collect pots during the annual closure of internal coastal waters to all crab, eel, fish and shrimp pots. The closure runs Jan. 1-31 for waters north and east of the Highway 58 bridge over Bogue Sound to Emerald Isle, and March 1-15 for waters south and west of the Highway 58 bridge to Emerald Isle.

Read the full article at WECT

Critically endangered right whale found dead off NC coast

January 30, 2026 — A critically endangered North Atlantic right whale that a team of responders attempted to disentangle from fishing gear nearly two months ago was found dead earlier this week off the North Carolina coast.

The 4-year-old male, identified as “Division,” died from injuries caused by being entangled.

An aerial survey team on Tuesday spotted what was left of Division’s carcass floating about 25 miles offshore of Avon, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

On Dec. 4, 2025, responders from NOAA Fisheries, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission took to the sea to join forces with a Georgia-based aerial survey team from Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute in an effort to document Division’s entanglement and monitor his behavior.

At that time, Division was off Georgia’s coast near St. Simons Island.

Read the full article at CoastalReview.org