MOREHEAD CITY – The state’s Marine Fisheries Division will hold two meetings this month to explain new flounder permit and reporting requirements for pound net fishermen and fish dealers.
The meetings will be held as follows:
July 26 at 6 p.m.
NC Division of Marine Fisheries’ Central District Office
5285 Highway 70 West, Morehead City
July 27 at 6 p.m.
Dare County Center Multipurpose Room
950 Marshall C. Collins Drive, Manteo
The new requirements stem from Supplement A to Amendment 1 of the Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan, adopted by the Marine Fisheries Commission in November. The supplement requires a commercial pound net quota that reduces pound net flounder landings by 38 percent from the average 2011 to 2015 landings. The quota will be allocated to different waterbody management groups.
The division plans to implement and monitor the quota by requiring those who buy flounder from pound net fishermen to hold a Flounder Pound Net Dealer Permit and report pound net flounder landings daily to the Division of Marine Fisheries. The permit will be required to purchase flounder from pound net fishermen beginning Aug. 1. The daily reporting requirement begins Sept. 1.
At the meetings, state marine fisheries staff will explain the details of how this system will work. Staff will also provide the quotas for the different waterbody management groups and answer questions from fishermen and dealers.
The Flounder Pound Net Dealer Permit is now available free of charge from Division of Marine Fisheries license offices. For specific regulations on the permit, see Proclamation M-14-2016 here.
For more information, contact Mike Loeffler with the Division of Marine Fisheries at 252-264-3911 or Michael.Loeffler@ncdenr.gov.
