NCFA BOARD AND STAFF WISH YOU AND YOURS A VERY SAFE AND HAPPY THANKSGIVING
MFC Meeting Summary
Last week the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission (MFC) met for their quarterly business meeting in Emerald Isle. The MFC approved the draft management plans for the Eastern Oyster and Hard Clam fisheries for public comment and advisory committee review.
Director Rawls also gave an update on beginning work on Amendment 4 to the southern flounder fisheries management plan (FMP). The plan is to shift the recreational and commercial allocation to 50/50 for the 2025 season, one year earlier than what was outline in Amendment 3. The Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) plan to present draft Amendment 4 at the February MFC meeting with final approval at their August 2025 meeting. Important to note, since the last flounder stock assessment update was not approved for use, DMF will still be managing for a 72% reduction as outlined in Amendment 3 during this process.
As for speckled trout, the MFC chose their preferred management measures.
Recreational:
- 14” to 20” slot limit with one fish over 26”
- 3 fish bag limit
- No captain and crew limit on for-hire trips
- Equates to a 26.7% harvest reduction for the recreational sector
Commercial:
- 14” to 22” slot limit
- Saturday – Sunday closure January through September
- Saturday – Monday closure October through December
- Formalize stop net fishery management
- Equates to a 38.3% harvest reduction for the commercial sector
Cold Stun Management:
- extend the fishery closure by 15 days to June 30th, after a cold stun
These measures will go for legislative review and will be voted on for final adoption at the February MFC meeting.
Thomas Newman
Fisheries Liaison
Right Whale Information
Right Whales are beginning to migrate south and will be passing through North Carolina for next month or so.
What to do when you see a right whale:
-report sightings right away to 1-877-whale-help (877-942-5343)
-Get photos and video even if it seems too far away
– leave a voicemail with who is making the report, lat/long, date, time, number of animals, direction of movement if known, and if there are photos and video, and how to contact the caller back
