Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Fisheries topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Currituck commissioners adopt resolution opposing proposed blue crab landing limits
Summary
The board voted Nov. 3 to adopt a resolution opposing recently proposed Division of Marine Fisheries restrictions on blue crab landings, citing peer-review concerns with the stock assessment and potential local economic harm; the resolution will be forwarded to the county's state representatives and the Marine Fisheries Commission.
The Currituck County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously on Nov. 3, 2025, to adopt a resolution opposing recently proposed regulatory changes for blue crab harvests by the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries. Commissioners and speakers said the proposed changes — described in the meeting as a trip-limit approach (the county's area was described in discussion as facing a 30-bushel limit from September to December and additional restrictions) — would reduce local landings and harm commercial watermen.
Commissioner Rose, who represents commercial-fishing interests on a regional coalition, told the board the stock assessment "did not pass peer review," and she and other speakers urged the board to delay action until the 2026 stock assessment is peer reviewed. The resolution, as read into the record, expressed concern about a projected 21.7% decrease in landings (measured against a 2019–23 average) and cited economic figures from North Carolina Sea Grant about the state shellfish industry.
The board voted to adopt the resolution and to forward it to Currituck's representatives in the North Carolina General Assembly and to the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission. Commissioners also encouraged public participation ahead of the Marine Fisheries Commission meeting noted during discussion.
