August 21, 2014 — Fewer striped bass would be fished from local waters as soon as next year under a series of options being considered by federal fisheries regulators that seek to sustain a vital coastal species that has seen a 20 percent harvest decline since 2008.
Regulators in coming weeks will seek public comment on a long list of proposals to bolster the striped bass population, including reducing the commercial fishing harvest by up to 25 percent annually. Sport fishers could see a change in the size and number of fish taken, most likely to one striper a day, from a current two.
Several options propose allowing anglers to keep two fish, but of larger size, with higher limits phased in over time.
"We're trying to strike a balance," said Jim Gilmore, marine resources bureau chief of the New York Department of Environmental Conservation, which will conduct forums and enforce any new rules. "We don't want to put people out of business. It's a viable fishery."
The long list of options is proposed in a draft plan released Thursday by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, which manages striped bass and other coastal fish.
"Even though the stock is not overfished and overfishing is not occurring, the spawning stock biomass [the critical striped bass breeders] is approaching its overfished threshold" the report says. "In addition, a similar downtrend has been observed in total harvest with approximately a 19 percent decrease since 2008."