DATE: Wednesday, November 26, 1997          TAG: 9711260648

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY SCOTT HARPER, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS                      LENGTH:   91 lines

STATE TAKES NEW ANGLE WITH 2 STARS OF THE BAY

Virginia took innovative steps Tuesday in managing two of the most renowned seafood species in the Chesapeake Bay, rockfish and oysters.

For rockfish - also known as striped bass or stripers - the Virginia Marine Resources Commission approved a free-market system that will allow commercial fishermen to buy and sell the right to harvest these popular fish from state waters.

The move, effective Feb. 21, the start of the 1998 rockfish season, is a first in Virginia. It represents a major shift from the strong-government programs of the past, which rely on regulations and catch limits to conserve fish but often confuse and frustrate the seafood industry.

``This will allow fishermen to be more like businessmen, and we hope it creates a greater sense of stewardship,'' said Jack Travelstead, state director of saltwater fisheries. Travelstead and a broad coalition of fishing groups spent a year designing the new system, called an ``individual transferable quota,'' or ITQ.

Also Tuesday, the commission voted unanimously to collect as many as 2,500 bushels of oysters from Tangier and Pocomoke sounds, near the Maryland border, and replant them on three artificial oyster reefs in sheltered rivers.

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation, a leading environmental group, is paying $50,000 of the $74,000 cost of the project, which gets under way Monday.

Virginia tried an identical experiment last year and got rave reviews. Scientists and environmentalists hope to take what they believe are disease-resistant oysters from the two sounds, move them to safer waters and spark a new population on man-made reefs scattered throughout the state. One of those reefs is in the Lynnhaven River in Virginia Beach, and another is planned for the Western Branch of the Elizabeth River in Portsmouth next year. Neither is slated, so far, to get Tangier and Pocomoke oysters.

Beginning Monday, watermen will be hired to gather large, adult oysters from Tangier and Pocomoke sounds - two historically rich fishing grounds in the Bay - and plant them on reefs in the Great Wicomico River, the Piankatank River and Pungoteague Creek on Virginia's Eastern Shore, said Jim Wesson, state director of oyster restoration.

Watermen originally had asked to harvest the big oysters and sell them on the open market. But they agreed Tuesday to again participate in the boat-lift project, which promises them about $25 per bushel.

Virginia and Maryland are struggling to revive their once mighty oyster stocks, which have dropped to 1 percent of their historic highs. Pollution, overharvesting and an infestation of two parasites, known as MSX and Dermo, are blamed for ravaging the Bay oyster population.

Less than a decade ago, rockfish were thought to be going the way of oysters. A fishing ban was enacted to combat sharp declines in Virginia and Maryland. But the moratorium was lifted in 1990, and populations have since boomed, giving the states their biggest success story in fish conservation.

Since the reviving of the stocks, however, there has been constant debate about how many fish commercial and recreational fishermen should be allowed to catch. Annual government quotas were criticized as too low and unfairly distributed.

Virginia hopes to end much of this wrangling with its new management system. Under the ITQ program, there no longer will be gear limits or questions from regulators about fishing activity.

The program does not apply to charter boat captains or recreational anglers; they still must abide by a catch limit of two fish per person per day, Travelstead said.

Later this winter, the state will distribute tiny plastic tags for the 1.7 million pounds of rockfish that can legally be harvested next year from Virginia waters. The tags will be sent to the 565 commercial watermen who were licensed and registered to take rockfish last year.

They need to sign up for the new season by Jan. 9.

These fishermen then can catch their individual quotas throughout the season, attaching a colored tag to each of the rockfish they bag. Or they can sell or buy tags for whatever price the market allows.

Only licensed Virginia watermen can participate in this new market, a move intended to keep out-of-state fishermen and seafood companies from dominating the local trade, Travelstead said.

ITQs have been criticized by environmental groups as a way for rich seafood conglomerates to buy up and control a fishery. The rockfish program, however, allows a person to hold only 2 percent of the overall yearly quota.

So next year, the most a Virginia fisherman could legally harvest, given the 1.7 million-pound state quota, would be 34,000 pounds.

There was considerable debate about how many tags each of the 565 licensed watermen should receive. Some argued that the tags should be handed out evenly among those who use gill nets, pound nets, haul seines, fyke nets or rod and reel to catch their rockfish.

Others said this allocation was unfair, given that 68 percent use a gill net. They argued that the tags should be distributed in proportion to the use of each type of gear.

By unanimous vote, the commission sided with this latter approach. ILLUSTRATION: Color file photo

Graphic

MANAGIN ROCKFISH AND OYSTERS

[For complete graphic, please see microfilm]

Send Suggestions or Comments to webmaster@scholar.lib.vt.edu