THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, October 7, 1995 TAG: 9510070247
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY BETTY MITCHELL GRAY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 101 lines
The federal government is moving forward with a plan to restore the dwindling stock of weakfish along the Atlantic Coast by closing offshore waters to the catch of the popular fish, a federal fisheries manager said Friday.
After reviewing 1994 catch data and the comments made in letters and at public hearings along the Atlantic Coast, the National Marine Fisheries Service has decided to press ahead with a ban on the catch and possession of weakfish in the Exclusive Economic Zone - up to 200 miles off the Atlantic Coast.
``We're looking at the stocks of weakfish overall,'' said William T. Hogarth of the NMFS office of interjurisdictional fisheries management in Silver Spring, Md. ``Even though the 1994 data showed some improvement, the mortality of these fish is extremely high.''
Closure of the EEZ now rests with Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown, who is expected to make his decision within 30 days.
A closure, if approved by Brown, could come as early as Dec. 6.
North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission Chairman Robert V. Lucas was optimistic Friday that a compromise could be reached either through Brown or NMFS that would protect weakfish stocks - but avoid a complete closure of the EEZ.
``We'll just have to keep working with it,'' Lucas said. ``I'm not satisfied with the closure. And we'll just have to see it through.''
The effects of a closure of the EEZ to weakfish catches on North Carolina's watermen would be significant. Weakfish, also known as gray trout, are the second most valuable finfish caught by commercial fishermen in the state.
Fishermen worry that a ban on weakfish in the EEZ would leave a significant number of Hatteras commercial fishermen scrambling for something else to do this winter. And they say it could lead to a significant increase in conflicts among fishermen forced to fish in nearshore and inside waters.
``Obviously, it's going to have major effects: It's going to be an economic detriment to fishermen. And it will be increased pressure on inside waters,'' said Lucas. ``And it will cause more user conflicts as well.''
In July, the state Marine Fisheries Commission proposed a plan to increase the minimum size of weakfish that could be caught by fishermen to 12 inches and impose appropriate restrictions on nets to allow small weakfish to escape. But that compromise was rejected by the NMFS and other fisheries management agencies.
The latest National Marine Fisheries Service rule would prohibit the catch and possession of weakfish by recreational and commercial fishermen in the Atlantic Coast Exclusive Economic Zone, a conservation zone between three and 200 miles in the Atlantic Ocean off East Coast states.
It would also bar fishermen plying the EEZ from possessing weakfish taken incidental to catches of other species of fish. The proposed rule stipulates that such bycatch must be released to the water as soon as possible.
Additional details of the proposed ban on EEZ weakfish catches will be published early next week by NMFS.
However, even as they were announcing and responding to an offshore ban, federal and state fisheries officials said privately that a compromise may still be possible if the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission approves a rule change banning flynets south of Cape Hatteras. That ban would be intended to protect young weakfish that congregate in the area in the fall and winter.
The flynet ban was one of about 20 proposed rules brought forward by the state Marine Fisheries Commission in September for public comment next month.
Federal officials have said they could probably match state action on flynets south of Cape Hatteras with an identical ban in federal offshore waters and allow fishermen to use other types of gear, such as gill nets, to catch weakfish in federal waters.
And NMFS officials have told the state they would be willing to endorse such a plan before the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, the 15-state compact of Atlantic Coast states that sought federal action on weakfish earlier this year.
The state fisheries director can close the area to flynets temporarily by proclamation to protect weakfish stocks. The rule change would make the closure permanent.
The commission is scheduled to vote on the rule when it meets in Hatteras Nov. 30 and Dec. 1.
Lucas said Friday that the merits of the flynet ban are strong enough that the issue should be able to stand on its own before the commission. But the idea of using the ban as a compromise with NMFS could make it even more appealing to state fisheries managers.
NMFS is seeking the closure of the EEZ, despite the flynet rule pending before the state Marine Fisheries Commission, because the state has not acted on the rule and federal fisheries managers felt they ``couldn't depend on it'' as an alternative to closing the EEZ, Hogarth said.
But Hogarth said closing the EEZ offers the best possible conservation measure, is easy to understand and enforce, and is in the best long-term economic interests of both commercial and recreational fishermen.
Pointing to recent improvements in the Atlantic Ocean striped bass stocks, which have been subject to a federal moratorium for the last five years, Hogarth said that weakfish stocks also should recover if fishing pressure is eliminated. But rather than a five-year moratorium, NMFS expects weakfish could recover in about two years, he said.
``It appears this fish will recover fairly quickly. It can be done,'' he said. ``But it will take a combined effort of the states and the federal government to ensure its recovery.''
by CNB