Atlantic fisheries regulators eye protections as new research suggests bycatch impactsBy Timothy B. Wheeler, Bay Journal
Blueback herring and alewife, known collectively as river herring, (shown here) once outnumbered shad at Conowingo Dam's lift but have virtually disappeared in recent years. (Dave Harp)
Mid-Atlantic fisheries regulators are weighing whether to take additional steps to protect American shad and river herring as they migrate along the East Coast, as some new research suggests significant numbers of herring may be accidentally netted by offshore trawlers.
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council is scheduled to receive a staff-written white paper in August reviewing whether to move toward imposing tighter limits on the amount of shad and river herring that could be caught by offshore fleets pursuing another species, Atlantic mackerel. The council, which regulates commercial fishing within federal waters from New York to North Carolina, plans to make a decision at its October meeting.
The issue could have implications for depleted spawning runs of shad and river herring in many Chesapeake Bay rivers, where utilities, state and federal governments have invested tens of millions of dollars removing dams or building lifts and other ways for the fish to get past barriers that block their migrations to historic spawning grounds.
In April, Exelon Corp., owner of the Conowingo Dam on the Susquehanna River, agreed to a series of upgrades to its fish lift operation aimed at reviving spawning runs on the Bay's largest tributary. The number of shad using the $12 million lift built in 1991 rose dramatically for about a decade, but has since declined precipitously. Blueback herring and alewife, known collectively as river herring, once outnumbered shad at the lift but have virtually disappeared in recent years.
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