Time to fix our "fishy" regulations

It took way too long (6 years) and cost way too much, but a Wake County Superior Court judge finally ruled that North Carolina has failed to protect our coastal fisheries. We have the most lax regulations on the entire East Coast and hard evidence revealed that not one of our state’s 13 “managed” coastal fish stocks is viable.   

Our state has some 322 miles of ocean shoreline and over 12,000 miles of estuarine (rivers, bays, sounds and wetlands) coastlines, the second largest in the U.S. Historically, there have been plentiful supplies of fish and shellfish for our citizens, so much so that at one time the state began promoting these resources to other states as a source for economic development. The advent of widespread rail lines and highways allowed these abundant supplies, chiefly oysters and finfish to be enjoyed by people in northern cities.

As the sport fishing industry grew there was a need to better control the valuable resources of both the commercial and sportfishing sectors. In the 1960s, the Division of Commercial and Sports Fisheries was created for management and enforcement of supplies, later renamed the Division of Marine Fisheries, located with the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Since DEQ is an administrative agency, the operating officers are appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the Governor. The Marine Fisheries Commission (MFC), again appointed by the Governor, is tasked with determining fisheries management policies.

The Marine Fisheries Commission Board consists of nine members. Two of the seats are filled by active commercial fishermen (defined as receiving 50 percent of their income from fishing) and one member is designated for a member of the commercial fishing industry. One-third of the MFC represents commercial fishing interests. There are three seats dedicated to recreational interests, specifically one recreational fisherman, two sport/recreational fishermen who earn 10 percent or less of their income from sports fishing and one sport/recreational fishing industry representative. The remaining three seats are filed by at least one scientist and two at-large members.

And herein lies much of the reason for today’s problems. Many of the administrative officers and the MFC board are political appointments. The plain truth is both are examples of how partisan political influence, largely commercial fishing and coastal interests, has trumped the interests of the public at large.

There is a longstanding war between the commercial and recreational sport interests, with each accusing the other of overfishing our waters. But while they disagreed and argued our fisheries dwindled.

The Coastal Conservation Association of North Carolina and a group of individual citizens began a lawsuit to hold the state accountable for failing to protect our coastal fisheries.

In 2022, the North Carolina Court of Appeals unanimously ruled that the state has “an affirmative duty” under the public-trust doctrine and our Constitution to “preserve the people’s right to fish and harvest fish,” a “duty to preserve fisheries for the benefit of the public,” and also a “duty to keep fisheries safe from injury, harm, or destruction for all time.”

It is difficult, not impossible, to take fairly precise measurements to determine fish populations. Fish scientists describe the process as “counting trees in a forest where the trees are constantly moving and you can’t see them.”

Superior Court Judge G. Bryan Collins’ 190-page verdict contains the following statements:

“In 1997, the Fisheries Reform Act (FRA) was enacted to bring about comprehensive fisheries management reform.

“Up until the last quarter of the 20^th Century, North Carolina fisheries were so abundant that overharvest and allocation were seldom issues of concern.

“In the last quarter of the 20^th Century, uncontrolled commercial fishing put enormous pressure on North Carolina’s coastal fisheries.

“Today, none of North Carolina’s pre-FRA depleted stocks have been restored to long-term viability, and many other managed stocks have declined to the point of nonviability.

“After 30 years the state has completely failed to meet the long-term viability standard. Not a single one of North Carolina’s stocks managed under a Fisheries Management Plan exhibits long-term viability.” The state conceded the findings reported.

The verdict concludes by ordering... “Within 30 days of this order [September 17, 2026], counsel for the parties shall meet and confer for the purpose of preparing a joint report to the court within 45 days of this order as to any issues the parties may wish the court to consider in connection with the scheduling of further proceedings in the remedy phase of this action.”

In other words, no restrictions, no changes in policy and no actions that will halt the further diminishing of our fisheries were ordered.

We can’t wait another six years for meaningful fisheries regulation.

North Carolina needs better fisheries regulations NOW. Restrictions may well be in order to get meaningful reforms.

Tom Campbell is a Hall of Fame North Carolina broadcaster and columnist who has covered North Carolina public policy issues since 1965.  Contact him at tomcamp@ncspin.com