US EditionShrimpgate: New Bill to Protect Waterways Would 'Destroy' Shrimp Industry in North Carolina, Critics Warn
NORTH CAROLINA, JUN 18 – The bill includes a ban on shrimp trawling near shore to protect estuaries and fish populations, with 75% of state shrimp catch affected, lawmakers said.
- On Wednesday, the North Carolina Senate approved House Bill 442, which prohibits shrimp trawling in the state's inland waterways and within a half-mile of the coastline to safeguard important marine ecosystems.
- The bill originated as a measure to restore recreational flounder and red snapper fishing but received a last-minute amendment banning shrimp trawling, sparking debate among stakeholders.
- Supporters cited studies emphasizing the damage shrimp trawling causes, including high bycatch rates, juvenile fish deaths, and habitat degradation, while opponents warned it would devastate shrimpers’ livelihoods.
- The Senate approved the bill 41-4; it includes a misdemeanor penalty with up to five months jail, and mandates a flounder season and fish stock assessments to balance conservation and fishing interests.
- If the bill passes the final House vote and is signed by the governor, it will align North Carolina’s fisheries management with neighboring states but could significantly impact coastal shrimping communities.
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Measure that would halt inshore shrimp trawling advances - The Coastland Times
By Jennifer Allen, CoastalReview.org A senator representing five Piedmont counties has introduced an amendment to a House bill that, if it becomes law, will prohibit shrimp trawling in all of North Carolina’s inland waters and within a half-mile of the Atlantic Ocean shoreline. Despite protests from a coastal senator and several commercial fishing representatives, two Senate committees that met Tuesday were in favor of amending House Bill 442, w…
Shrimp fishermen will receive a nature permit until 2045. This was confirmed by outgoing State Secretary Rummenie of Fisheries after a report in De Telegraaf. The fishermen's old permit had expired more than two years ago and their tolerance permit would also expire on 1 July. "So it was high time", Rummenie said in the NOS Radio 1 Journaal. He issued the permit for twenty years, because according to him "you can't keep a company running on the …
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