Virginia Commission: No New Menhaden Restrictions
Eugene L. 12.20.22
Back in the middle of November, we talked about State Delegate Tim Anderson (R)-Virginia Beach sponsoring a bill that would put a two-year moratorium to be placed on commercial Atlantic menhaden fishing efforts inside the Virginia portion of the Chesapeake Bay. Well, that didn’t bear fruit and unfortunately for anglers and conservationists, commercial menhaden fishing will continue going on in the Virginia portion of the Chesapeake Bay. Commercial fishing firms like Omega Protein can continue fishing in Virginia for now. The Virginia Marine Resources Commission on Tuesday chose not to place new limits on the commercial menhaden harvest. This decision came in after the commission held hours of hearings from roughly three dozen public commentators.
The Virginia Marine Resources Commission board members didn’t make a vote on new regulations at the meeting, instead they put forward and approved a non-binding motion. In hopes of trying to reach an agreement with the commercial menhaden fishing industry in the near future. This meeting and decision is just another step in a decades-long fight over these little baitfish.
TheAtlantic Menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus) is a smallish silver-scaled baitfish of large importance. These fish serve as a major forage species for many different species in the Chesapeake Bay. Being such a vital prey species for so many species of sportfish in the Chesapeake Bay, the commercial harvest of them has caused a lot of arguments and contention among all the interested parties.
Virginia is the only state along the eastern seaboard that still allows the commercial harvest of menhaden in state waters. Commercial harvesters like Omega Protein catches these little fish in large purse sein nets by the thousands of tons. Then takes them to be processed into fish oil and fishmeal at their Reedville facility. The oils and fish meal are used for a variety of other industries as raw materials.
Sportfishing groups and environmental groups though have been pushing for a total ban on the commercial harvest of menhaden harvest in the Chesapeake Bay. They claim that the environmental cost is to great due to the harvest of the baitfish.Earlier this year a petition brought about by the Virginia Saltwater Sportfishing Association supporting a ban got 9,200 signatures.
The new proposed regulations this week would not go nearly as far a complete ban of the commercial purse seining, instead it would just add in new regulations for the commercial harvest.
