May 24, 2018 — North Carolina’s Marine Fisheries Commission has approved new rules aimed at dramatically reducing the amount of bycatch taken in by shrimpers.
The commission approved by unanimous vote, at its 17 May hearing, to mandate that shrimp trawls, where more than 90 feet of headrope is allowed, use a gear combination. Tests showed the changes reduced finfish bycatch by 40 percent.
The measure takes effect 1 July 2019. It also comes after a three-year public-private stakeholder group first gathered to begin testing methods that reduce bycatch while minimizing shrimp loss.
Chris Stewart, a shrimp biologist with the state, said the group received about USD 500,000 (EUR 426,127) in grant funding and up to USD 165,000 (EUR 140,621) in in-kind corporate contributions to conduct the studies. Funding came from such groups as the MFC Conservation Fund, the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act and NOAA Fisheries’ Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program.
Read the full story at Seafood Source