Message from Stripers Forever:
If you haven't seen, trawlers are back at it in NC now that the season has been re-opened after the rules change, and dead striped bass are once again littering the surface. It's a mess... and the comms are blaming the closure of the EEZ, but if you read between the lines, they are complaining that they would not be under fire if they weren't forced to fish among recreational boats who have been capturing the slaughter on video. In other words, this is just par for the course, but they can't do it out of sight anymore.
The reason I'm writing is to encourage anyone who lives or fishes in NC to write NCDMF and let them know how you feel. Please do so respectfully and factually, but let them know how you feel. We have found Dr. Daniels to be more than receptive to the input he receives, and the quick action on the change from head-count and high-grading to a poundage-based quota (whatever your opinion) should be seen as encouraging.
Commercial fishermen have the influence because they are perceived as having the most to lose economically, but if recreational anglers speak up in force, the message will get through.
Can you get any more pissed off at the trawler fleet of N. Carolina! Another massive kill of discarded Stripers in the thousands! These are not small fish either, they are breeders! Game fish now! Coast wide! BAN THE SALE OF WILD BASS BEFORE IT IS TRULY TOO LATE! Set the recreational limit at 1 fish per day with a slot!
