by Jackie Nunnery
CLARAVILLE—Hundreds showed up to Northumberland High School on Saturday, September 19, to voice their opinions on potential action by Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) to further reduce the Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap (bay cap) through the Atlantic Menhaden Draft Addendum II.
If enacted, the bay cap could be cut by up to 50% from its current 51,000 metric tons (mt). Options show proposed caps ranging from 45,900 mt to 25,500 mt as well as linking the bay cap to the total allowable catch (TAC), which is a coastwide quota set by ASMFC based on stock assessment models and divided among coastal states to provide their state quotas.
According to a presentation by ASMFC fishery management plan coordinator James Boyle, “the bay cap was first established in 2006, before there was a coastwide TAC, as a precautionary measure….
