I think this is a bunch of Poo! (pardon my language):
Quote:
The reason, they believe, is that anglers farther south are targeting the older, most productive females, leaving fewer spawners in the water.
Reacting to that public clamor, Northern New England representatives on the commission pushed for curtailment of striped bass fishing not only in the bay but also, to a lesser extent, along the entire coast.
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Lets look at what the Northern states take from the spawning population:
Most states have 28" min and take 2 fish per person per trip recreationally..
Mass and RI has a 34" commercial min.
The world record almost fell twice last year in RI and did this year in CT. This doesnt count the fact that there is an unenforceable management regulation along the coast in the EEZ closure. (I personally fully support opening the eez and managing through creel, size, and season length as they are more enforceable and would lead to a more protected fishery -- As it stands now, fish are readily taken outside the EEZ and brought to shore under state regs. JMNSHO)
Now the proposal would greatly curtail Maryland rec's chances on the highly sought after larger fish when we take only one fish per angler per trip and while the fish are with us much of the time our season is closed for harvest. Argueably a viable recreational fishery in the bay is dependant upon access to this species.
Yes, MD has some MAJOR problems with commercial net poaching and concerns over myco. However to look to Maryland to take a bigger brunt of the hit over a concern for spawning stock fish would have been unjust..
I agree the issue is not going away. I hope our representation can represent our intrest in the resource well for today and the future.
Hybrid Mode
