by Larry Chowning
The saga of the future of Virginia’s menhaden reduction fishery on the Chesapeake Bay continues to unfold as the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) Menhaden Management Board (MMB) on Tuesday, August 6, approved a motion that could lead to further regulations of the fishery.
The MMB approved a motion to establish a workgroup to consider and evaluate “precautionary options” in the regulation of the Commonwealth’s menhaden fishery.
This includes considering time and area closures of Virginia’s menhaden reduction fishery “to be protective of piscivorous birds and fish during critical points of their life cycle.”
The approval to create a workgroup came on the heals of a motion made by Maryland commissioner Lynn Fegley, who serves as director of fishing and boat services at the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
She introduced a motion to initiate an addendum to the Atlantic Menhaden Interstate Management plan that would regulate menhaden purse net fishing of boats over 300 tons. This was specifically directed at the Ocean Harvesters fleet out of Reedville.
Fegley’s motion stated the “document should include seasonal (fishing) closures of….
