Press Releases

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Edenton National Fish Hatchery have joined together to enhance the Striped Bass population in the lower Cape Fear River in hopes of boosting natural reproduction in the waterway.

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission will meet in person Nov. 20-22 at the Islander Hotel & Resort, 102 Islander Drive, Emerald Isle, NC 28594. The meeting will also be livestreamed on YouTube.

The Finfish Advisory Committee of the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission will meet Oct. 23 at 6 p.m. at the Division of Marine Fisheries Central District Office. The meeting will also be livestreamed to YouTube.

The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries will hold a public hearing on proposed shellfish leases in Dare County at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 13. The hearing will be held in-person at the Dare County Government Center, 926 Marshall C. Collins Drive, Manteo and by Webex.

The Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries has received a new Endangered Species Act Section 10 Incidental Take Permit (ITP) from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). The ITP authorizes a limited number of incidental takes of sea turtles and sturgeon in internal Coastal and Joint Fishing Waters for estuarine gill net fisheries with the exceptions of runaround/strike/drop and drift gill nets.

The Habitat and Water Quality Advisory Committee of the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission will meet Oct.16 at 6 p.m. at the Division of Marine Fisheries Central District Office. Also, the meeting will be livestreamed to YouTube.

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission is looking for commercial and recreational fishermen, scientists, and other interested parties to sit on various fisheries advisory committees.

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission Nominating Committee will meet at the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries Central District Office conference room on Oct. 17 at 6 p.m.

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission is accepting public comment on eight proposed rules pertaining to the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact, false albacore management and pot marking requirements. A public hearing will be held by web conference on Oct. 30 at 6 p.m. A listening station will be established at the NCDEQ Division of Marine Fisheries Central District Office at 5285 Highway 70 West, Morehead City.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries is accepting public comment on the Draft Spotted Seatrout Fishery Management Plan Amendment 1.

The current Saturday and Sunday commercial harvest closure for striped mullet will change to a Saturday through Monday closure beginning Oct. 1 and continue through Dec. 31. The change implements a management strategy in Amendment 2 to the Striped Mullet Fishery Management Plan, adopted by the Marine Fisheries Commission in May 2024.

The Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries has revised the boundaries for estuarine gill net management areas and updated gear definitions in anticipation that a new Incidental Take Permit (ITP) may be issued during the upcoming commercial flounder season.

The N.C. Coastal Habitat Protection Plan Steering Committee will meet from 10 a.m. to noon on Monday, Sept. 23 at the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality Washington Regional Office, 943 Washington Square Mall, Highway 17, Washington, NC 27889 and by web conference.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries, in partnership with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, will conduct dye study training in the Cape Fear River, beginning on Wednesday, Sept. 18. The dye, which may cause the water to appear reddish or pinkish in a portion of the river, will be released from the Carolina Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant for a 12-hour period, beginning in the early morning.