THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, May 18, 1995 TAG: 9505180743
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY BETTY MITCHELL GRAY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: GREENVILLE LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines
One group of North Carolina sport anglers, worried about the decline in coastal fish stocks, says it's best to take those concerns ``to the top.''
Members of the Atlantic Coast Conservation Association are scheduled to meet with Gov. James B. Hunt Jr. on Friday afternoon in Greenville to seek his support for efforts to protect the state's fish populations.
The ACCA is made up of boat owners, marina and charter boat owners and individual recreational fishermen.
Hunt is trying to get a well-rounded view of the fishing industry, said Debbie Crane, spokesman for the Department of Environment, Health and Natural Resources. The agency oversees state fisheries and environmental programs.
She said the meeting fulfills Hunt's pledge to meet with sport fishermen. The anglers began pressing for time with Hunt after the governor traveled to Elizabeth City last year to meet with Albemarle-area commercial anglers.
The commercial anglers were concerned about the number of out-of-state fishermen plying area waters for blue crabs.
``We started asking then for a meeting with the governor,'' said Richen M. Brame, executive director of the state ACCA, which represents about 3,000 sports anglers. ``We'll talk about everything from whether or not the coastal fishery will be managed properly in the future . . . to the saltwater fishing license. We'd like to know how the governor feels about that as a source of funds.''
The fishermen will hold a public question-and-answer session with Hunt at 4 p.m. at the Ramada Inn. The state's chief executive will then meet privately with Marine Fisheries Commission Chairman Robert V. Lucas and several ACCA board members, Brame said.
The anglers' agenda is expected to include:
Requests for improved enforcement of fisheries regulations.
A budget increase for the fisheries division.
Support for the moratorium on commercial fishing licenses and the findings of a related study committee.
Active support of a sport fishing license for coastal anglers, and support for continued state participation in the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, a compact of Atlantic Coast states that manages migratory fish.
Sport fishing in North Carolina has attracted more than 1.2 million anglers to the coast in each of the past three years. These anglers made an estimated 4.4 million fishing trips, including charter boat excursions, fishing trips on private boats and individual fishing trips to the Outer Banks beaches, according to statistics from the Department of Environment Health and Natural Resources.
``The recreational fishing industry and the eastern North Carolina economy thrives on a healthy fish stock,'' said Doug Hoffman, treasurer of the state chapter of the ACCA. ``And the governor and politicians in general just need to see that.''
Hoffman added, ``Healthy fish stocks will ultimately help everybody. That's the message that needs to get across.''
Hoffman said he hopes Friday's meeting with Hunt will prompt more sports anglers to become active in the continuing debate over the future of the state's coastal fishing stocks.
``People need to get more involved,'' he said. ``They need to speak up.'' by CNB