Your chance to provide input to the Mid-Atlantic Fisheries Management Council (MAFMC) is right now, and it will end February 28 – don’t miss the opportunity! The MAFMC has stated that they’re “seeking public input on the future of fisheries management in the Mid-Atlantic,” as they develop their 2020 to 2024 Strategic Plan. “All interested stakeholders” (that means YOU, fellow anglers!) are invited to take a survey they’ve posted online, which includes opportunities to comment on the Council’s vision and mission as well as the specific goals and objectives that will guide the Council’s management activities over the next five years. We here at FishTalk want to encourage everyone reading this right now to click on the link and invest a few minutes in making the voice of the recreational angler be heard: give your input to the MAFMC now.
We all spend countless hours talking about issues like the debacle that is the menhaden reduction fishery. We bemoan the failure of government entities to treat and regulate fisheries on an ecosystem-wide basis instead of looking at each individual species with blinders on. We complain about the laughable “best science” the regulators sometimes come up with. (Check out Capt. Monty Hawkin’s Habitat, Fishery Restoration, and a Complete Lack of Common Sense, to get a dose of what we’re talking about). And of course, there’s constant controversy over striped bass populations.
The powers that be have asked for public input folks, so it’s time to get engaged. It took a mere 10 or 12 minutes to take the survey, which includes several areas where you can leave comments beyond checking the poor-fair-good-best boxes. We would suggest that if you’ve ever complained about a regulation or expressed angst over a fishery, you owe it to yourself and your fishing comrades to click on the link and give your input to the MAFMC right now.