Press Releases

Fishermen purchasing or renewing fishing licenses or vessel registrations at Division of Marine Fisheries offices can now use their credit cards for payment.

Eighty readopted marine fisheries rules become effective today, though these rules should have minimal impact on fishing practices. The rules pertain to standards for commercial shellfish sanitation and processing procedures, and most of the amendments simply codify existing practices or regulations already implemented via proclamation.

Three advisory committees of the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission will meet in April to discuss a proposal to protect Submerged Aquatic Vegetation through shrimp trawl area closures. The meetings will be held in person and livestreamed on YouTube.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Division of Water Resources is now accepting public comment on the proposed list of streams, rivers, reservoirs and other water bodies in North Carolina considered to be “impaired,” or that do not meet water quality standards, in 2024.  

The Division of Marine Fisheries license office in Wilmington will close at 12:30 p.m. on Friday, March 15. The office will reopen at 8 a.m. on Monday March 18.

Are you interested in learning more about southern flounder (Paralichthys lethostigma) in North Carolina? Sign up to attend the North Carolina Southern Flounder Symposium.

The North Carolina Environmental Management Commission will meet in the Ground Floor Hearing Room of the Archdale Building in Raleigh on March 13 and 14. Members of the public may attend in-person or join the meeting by computer or phone.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Aquatic Weed Control Program will hold a public meeting March 13 on management of the invasive aquatic weed hydrilla at Lake Tillery. 

The North Carolina Environmental Management Commission will meet in the Ground Floor Hearing Room of the Archdale Building in Raleigh on March 13 and 14. Members of the public may attend in-person or join the meeting by computer or phone. 

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission today took another step toward recovery of the striped mullet fishery, selecting its preferred management options for the Draft Striped Mullet Fishery Management Plan Amendment 2.