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January 28, 2009
MFC approves $1.7 million in projects
funded with fishing license sales
By SUSAN WEST
The North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission gave final approval at
its meeting on Jan. 22 to 11 new projects funded with $1.7 million in
revenue from recreational fishing license sales.
“I was especially happy to see money dedicated to herring research,” said fisheries commissioner Jess Hawkins.
More than $44,000 will go to a project studying the spawning characteristics of herring in the Albemarle Sound.
Incomplete scientific data on herring has made management of the stock
difficult for managers. After years of contentious debate,
the Marine Fisheries Commission (MFC) closed the herring fishery, the
oldest commercial fishery in the state, in December, 2006.
Scientists pointed to environmental factors, such as habitat and water
quality degradation, as the culprit behind the stock’s demise,
and fisheries officials believed that without a harvest moratorium to
protect spawning females, the stock could disappear.
Hawkins said there was little debate over the merit of the 11 new
projects at the Jan. 22 MFC meeting because the projects had been
carefully reviewed by Division of Marine Fisheries and Wildlife
Resources Commission (WRC) staff and by a joint committee of MFC and
WRC members. A request for proposals from local governments,
state agencies, and universities issued last August netted 19 proposals
totaling $2.2 million.
In addition to the herring
research project, other projects selected for funding include a
recreational data collection program, a submerged aquatic vegetation
monitoring program, a text messaging program to report tournament
mackerel catches, enhanced reviews of coastal development permits to
reduce habitat impacts, spotted sea trout research, development of
oyster seed planting methods, support for a youth fishing program, and
development of three boating access areas.
Revenue from most types of recreational fishing licenses sales go into the Marine Resources Fund.
From Jan. 1, 2007, when the license went into effect, through 2008, sales and interest earned about $9 million for the fund.
The fund contained $5.6 million at the end of 2008, after money for earlier projects and other obligations was deducted.
Annual revenue from the license has fallen far short of the $19 million
estimate provided when the state legislature debated whether to
implement a saltwater license in North Carolina.
Sales of all types of coastal recreational fishing licenses in 2008 dropped 12.56 percent from 2007.
Sales of the most popular types, the annual resident and nonresident
licenses, fell about 20 percent. There was also a drop in the
sale of 10-day licenses to anglers.
Dare County leads the state in saltwater license sales. Last
year, 83,025 licenses were sold in the county, compared to 93,831 in
2007.
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