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VMRC to take action on Chesapeake Bay menhaden fishery; public engagement requested (and encouraged)

Chesapeake Legal Alliance (CLA) has filed a petition for rulemaking to the Virginia Marine Resources Commission to save menhaden and the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem. CLA worked with a number of fishing and conservation groups on the petition which “lays out the blueprint for ‘how’ and ‘why’ the agency should be acting.” (Source: Press Release: CLA Files Petition for Rulemaking to Save Menhaden and Bay Ecosystem)

The 42-page petition, available online at CLA Files Petition for Rulemaking in Menhaden Case, sets forth a robust description of the current situation as well as specific recommendations to address this dire situation.


VMRC has noticed the petition. The notice identifies five requests by the petitioners Chesapeake Legal Alliance (David Reed) and Southern Maryland Recreational Fishing Organization:

  1. Enact a moratorium in the Bay: Set a precautionary moratorium on purse seine landings by the menhaden reduction fleet within the Chesapeake Bay.
  2. Require no less than 40% of harvest from federal waters: Set a limit of no more than 60% of current purse seine menhaden landings within Virginia waters (approximately 94,000 metric tons).
  3. Codify a 1-mile shoreline buffer: Establish a permanent 1-nautical mile shoreline buffer along Virginia’s shoreline prohibiting the use of menhaden purse seines.
  4. Fund and implement a menhaden population study: Implement and enhance the Atlantic Menhaden Research proposal to investigate localized depletion and its impacts on the Bay (VIMS, October 1, 2023).
  5. Establish proper industry oversight: Require increased vessel and landings monitoring and reporting to ensure compliance and reduce bycatch and impacts on Bay habitats.

The public comment period is January 15-February 5, 2024.



Photo: Discharging Menhaden from Vessel by Means of Tubs Subject: Menhaden fisheries by unknown author (1904): Aquatic products as fertilizers, Report of the United States Commissioner of Fisheries, 1902, on Wikimedia Commons


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