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Committee adopts temporary ban on commercial electrofishing in upper Rappahannock pending VMRC review
Summary
Sen. Stewart's bill to restrict commercial electrofishing drew competing views: some watermen and residents reported safety and economic harms around docks, while fisheries managers and conservation groups said electrofishing is a targeted tool for removing invasive blue catfish. The committee adopted a substitute to ban commercial electrofishing in the upper Rappahannock through Jan. 1, 2027, and asked the Virginia Marine Resources Commission to report.
Senator Stewart asked the committee to consider legislation prohibiting commercial electrofishing in Virginia waters, citing complaints in his district where boats using low-frequency probes near docks and swimming areas produced visible shocks and alarmed residents.
"They're scaring their children and their dogs," Stewart told the committee, asking for a moratorium in the Rappahannock while VMRC studies the practice.
Conservation groups, including the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, said electrofishing is a long-established technique used selectively to target blue catfish, an invasive species that has overwhelmed some tidal fisheries. Jay Ford of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and fisheries expert Chris Moore explained electrofishing's frequency-specific use and said processed blue catfish supply local processing plants.
Joseph Gress, acting commissioner of the Virginia Marine Resources Commission, told the committee the administration had no official position but said low-frequency electrofishing in tidal waters is used to capture catfish and that VMRC will prepare a report on practices, benefits and reported problems.
The committee accepted a substitute amendment banning commercial electrofishing in the Rappahannock River upstream of the Tappahannock Bridge North until Jan. 1, 2027, and asked VMRC to report to the committee on the practice and enforcement issues. The committee also directed staff to draft a letter requesting VMRC'026's findings and recommended next steps; the substitute and reporting request were adopted by the committee.
