October 27, 2016 — After failing to agree on an increase in the 2017 Atlantic menhaden catch limit at an August meeting, regional managers voted Wednesday to increase it by 6.45 percent.
But it’s not a surprising move, said John Bull, commissioner for Virginia Marine Resources.
“I believe the Atlantic Marine Fishery operates on sound science, and the science was not just sound,” Bull said.
The Atlantic Menhaden Management Board — a board within the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission — passed the vote 16-2 at a meeting Wednesday. Pennsylvania and the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife dissented, hoping to keep the status quo.
“That was overwhelmingly approved because the stock is in good shape,” Bull said. “An increase of even up to 40 percent would have carried minimal risks that the harvest could’ve resulted in overfishing.”