I fish the areas around Smith Point and can tell you that fishing has gone down hill over the last few years. You can't hardly catch a full sized croaker or spot much less a keeper flounder anymore. Over fishing the bay of menhaden and by-catches that contain Cobia, Stripers and other sport fish must be more tightly regulated or we'll have nothing more to fishing for. Tearing up the bottom with nets is inexcusable in the bay. Personally I'd like all netting to cease in the bay and Potomac river systems.
So-
I urge the Virginia Marine Resources Commission to begin a regulatory process to determine the appropriate depth of purse seines in the waters of the Chesapeake Bay and areas where this gear is not appropriate due to depth and/or other important resources. Recent net spills have highlighted the need to have regulations that better protect Virginias marine resources. The size and scale of the menhaden reduction fleet continues to raise significant questions about its effects on the menhaden population in Chesapeake Bay. Setting such regulations could help simply ensure that other Bay resources not targeted by this fishery will not be negatively affected by this resource.