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Committee narrows blue catfish possession limits in Pee Dee reach, keeps higher limit elsewhere
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Summary
An amendment set a daily possession limit of 25 blue catfish in a defined section of the Pee Dee River while maintaining a 150-fish limit elsewhere; the committee approved the change and returned the bill to the House floor, 14-0.
The committee approved an amendment to a Senate bill that reduces the daily possession limit for blue catfish to 25 fish in a defined stretch of the Pee Dee River — from the state border with North Carolina to Highway 301 in the upper reaches of the Santee River — while retaining a 150-fish daily limit elsewhere.
Representative Forrest said the amendment responds to concerns about rapidly reproducing blue catfish; he and others cited DNR testimony about the species' high fecundity. "They can lay 2,000,000 eggs a year," a member said in committee, describing the species' reproductive rate and why tighter limits are needed in certain reaches.
The committee moved and approved the amendment and returned the Senate bill to the House floor by roll call; the committee recorded a 14-0 vote. Members said the lower limit in the specific Pee Dee reach is intended to reduce an aggressive, high-producing population in that area.
