Thursday, December 29, 2005

Pressure to Ban Gill Nets Rising

A large number of recreational anglers have been advocating new legislation to ban the use of gill nets by commercial fishermen for several years and it appears that this movement is picking up steam. Just about every recreational angler we know supports more restrictive laws or banning the use of gill nets in North Carolina and it seems that everywhere we turn we hear the same argument over and over. The tragic incident on Hatteras in early December seems to have motivated more and more North Carolina anglers to stand up and voice their opinions. This Sunday, Gordon Churchill of Morehead City wrote a letter to the editor of the Winston-Salem journal that really sums up the argument well. While commercial fishermen are justified in their defense of their livelihood, the success of South Carolina's and Florida's net bans are just too impressive to ignore. We expect this pressure to enact a net ban to continue to build steam in 2006 and sincerely hope that legislators understand the potential impact a net ban could have on NC's fisheries and tourism.

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