Richmond, VA (January 20, 2011) -- Virginia’s General Assembly is considering six bills to protect menhaden, a Chesapeake Bay filter feeder valued for its ecological importance and a valuable food source for larger fish like striped bass and bluefish.
For over a decade much has been written about their importance in the chain of natural resources in the Bay, and lawmakers seem finally to be getting the message from conservationists and biologists worried about the plight of the small, oily fish.
Senate Bill 765 and House Bill 2280, the work of Sen. Ralph Northam, a Democrat from Norfolk, and Del. John Cosgrove, a Republican from Chesapeake, would take menhaden management out of the hands of state lawmakers and give it to the professionals at the Virginia Marine Resources Commission. As written currently, the bill also repeals the governor's authority to enact menhaden management measures by proclamation.
HB 2369, sponsored by Del. Barry Knight, a Republican representing Chesapeake and Virginia Beach, would reduce the 109,020 metric ton cap on menhaden harvesting in the Chesapeake Bay by 20 percent each year. HB 1656, sponsored by Del. Harry Purkey, a Republican from Virginia Beach, would ban menhaden harvesting within one mile of the shoreline of Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Newport News and Hampton.
HB 1913 sponsored by Del. Jackson Miller, a Manassas Republican, would put an end to menhaden fishing by purse seine in the Rappahannock River and its tributaries. And, HB 2165, sponsored by Appomattox Del. Watkins Abbitt Jr., one of two independents in the House, would place a $10 per ton fee on menhaden caught in Virginia waters.
No comments:
Post a Comment