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Fishing
is one of those exceptional experiences like mountain climbing, surfing
or paddling where two schools of thought exist among the diverse crowd
of folks who pursue these passions. One school believes in roughing it
and that the full experience of camp fires, sleeping on the ground or
getting stung by jellyfish is all part of the grand experiment that we
call outdoor sport. I sometimes find myself unwittingly fulfilling this
rung on the ladder...
Others, I have learned, combine their
time, energy and equipment used in the field into one with the natural
surroundings and go into the world "smoothing it" the way a talented
surfer carves a line in a fourteen foot wave, or a fly angler casts 80
feet of line to a tailing fish and presents the fly with the softness
of a butterfly landing on the water. For me this is the goal and these
are the friends and sponsors that have inspired me to do so...
Tight Loops & Lines,
Captain Seth Vernon~
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Redfish Can't Jump -
The Issue
North Carolina‘s state fish the red drum, aka redfish, puppy drum etc.,
was once depleted by overfishing and destructive gear practices such as
gill nets in inshore waters and estuarine nurseries. Although stricter
regulations and better enforcement have helped these fish move into the
"recovering" stage, they are a long ways from being "recovered". While
regulated as a “bycatch” fishery by the North Carolina Division of
Marine Fisheries an annual cap of 250,000 pounds has been exceeded in
year(s) 1998 by 44,366 lbs, in 1999 by 122,942 lbs and in 2000 an
excess of 20,953 lbs!
The Facts
| North Carolina’s
commercial harvest of red drum provideds 97% of the total harvest of the
species within the United States.
North Carolina’s total Commercial Profit from the sale of red
drum from the years 1972-2007 $4,042,043.00. The total profit from
recreational fishing targeting Red Drum in NC in 2004 alone was
$50,000,000.00.
North Carolina gill nets have indiscriminately killed
non-targeted species such as endangered sea turtles, waterfowl and
other fish species. Coastal anglers fishing in North Carolina
in 2006 spent a
total of $2.03 billion (the 5th highest total across the 23 coastal
states). The $2.03 billion in expenditures generated $2.5 billion in
total sales to businesses located in North Carolina, provided $780.8
million in personal income to workers in North Carolina, and supported
23,782 jobs in the state.
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The Solution
 | Protect
North
Carolina’s state fish by declaration of gamefish status thereby
prohibiting the commercial harvest or sale of red drum/redfish. |
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Terminate destructive fishing gear practices in NC
waters by eliminating gill nets. |
| Initialize
dual
enforcement for our NC Division of Marine Fisheries Officers and
NC Wildlife Officers allowing each branch to ensure enforcement of
existing regulations. |
The Solution
| Protect
North
Carolina’s state fish by declaration of gamefish status thereby
prohibiting the commercial harvest or sale of red drum/redfish. |
|
Terminate destructive fishing gear practices in NC
waters by eliminating gill nets. |
| Initialize
dual
enforcement for our NC Division of Marine Fisheries Officers and
NC Wildlife Officers allowing each branch to ensure enforcement of
existing regulations.
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