New harvest limits for striped bass in the Atlantic Ocean and in the Albemarle Sound/Roanoke River areas will take effect for the upcoming winter seasons.
Atlantic Ocean
The recreational daily bag limit for ocean striped bass will drop from two fish per day to one fish per day on Jan. 1.
The minimum size limit for striped bass in the Atlantic Ocean will remain at 28 inches for both the commercial and recreational fishery.
Albemarle Sound and Roanoke River Management Areas
The annual recreational harvest limits for the Albemarle Sound and Roanoke River Management Areas are:
68,750 pounds for the Albemarle Sound Management Area recreational fishery.
68,750 pounds for the Roanoke River Management Area recreational fishery.
The recreational size and bag limits remain the same.
The above management changes are necessary for the state to comply with the recent approval of Addendum IV to Amendment 6 to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Striped Bass.
The addendum responds to results of the 2013 Atlantic striped bass benchmark assessment and the 2013 Albemarle/Roanoke striped bass benchmark assessment. Both assessments show similar trends for the coastwide stock and the Albemarle/Roanoke stock, indicating fishing mortality in 2012 was above the target, and female spawning stock biomass has been steadily declining below the target level since the mid-2000s.
source: North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources
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