January 19, 2015 — In 2012, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, or ASMFC released a report saying the menhaden population along the Atlantic coast was in trouble and states needed to drastically cut back on their catch limits. But now, a scheduled external review has modified the way these studies are done, and it shows that menhaden are doing just fine.
The 643 page report says in big bold letters that the atlantic menhaden stock is not overfished, and overfishing is not occurring, which is what the watermen have been saying all along.
It's been a hard two years for menhaden fishermen in the Chesapeake Bay. With quota cutbacks, a group of watermen actually sued the Department of Natural Resources, saying the science behind the cutbacks was not sound.
Burl Lewis was one of the watermen in the courtroom, and today feels vindicated. But says he doesn't want to gloat.
Read the full story from WBOC-TV 16