THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, November 11, 1995 TAG: 9511110550
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
LENGTH: Short : 47 lines
A new permit to catch any species of Atlantic tuna is required for commercial vessels, charter boats, headboats and dealers by Nov. 15, and by private angling vessels by Jan. 1, 1996, a spokesman of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Fisheries Service said.
The new permit was established to improve the fisheries service's recreational surveys and reporting of tuna landings by commercial vessels, as well as to extend the information needed to better manage all tuna species.
This is the first season in which every tuna-fishing vessel and dealer is required to hold the Atlantic Tuna Permit. Although the final rule was published in July, fisheries service officials fear that many tuna fishermen don't yet know they need the permit. A federal permit is required:
For commercial fishing vessels and dealers to fish for, sell, or purchase bluefin, yellowfin, albacore, bigeye, or skipjack tuna and Atlantic bonito throughout the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean.
For recreational angling vessels, unless they fish only for bonito and no other tunas.
Shore-based anglers are not required to have a permit to take Atlantic tuna.
But, tuna caught by recreational anglers may not be sold.
Individuals caught fishing without the permit are subject to fines of up to $100,000 and may face forfeiture of their catch, gear, or vessel - or all three.
Application forms are available from the National Marine Fisheries Service Northeast Regional Office, Permit Office, One Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-3799, or call (508) 281-9370. STRIPED BASS RULES
Bruce L. Freeman, director of the Division of Marine Fisheries, has announced the following provisions for the hook-and-line harvest of striped bass in the Atlantic Ocean waters of North Carolina:
The hook-and-line season for striped bass in the Atlantic Ocean will open at 6 a.m. today and will close at midnight, April 30, 1996.
No person may possess striped bass less than 28 inches long taken by hook-and-line from the Atlantic Ocean. by CNB