Dorothy B SPEAK UP FOR STRIPERS!!!

[JBird]

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Council, or ASMFC, is going to change the regulations coastwide for Striped Bass for the 2015 season.
Their data suggests that, although overfishing is NOT occuring (their own claim which we happen to agree with), the spawning biomass is in decline and therefor a reduction is the harvest is warranted.
We have been given a list of options intended to achieve that reduction during this period of public comment and none of them include keeping things STATUS QUO. Captain Kevin has been on the water since 1951 and firmly believes that Striped Bass are more abundant now than they have ever been. There are many more men like him that agree. Their opinions may not be founded in data collected from samples but they still merit as much consideration as any biologists projections that were cooked up in a lab.
The over six decades spent at sea by Capt. Kevin and others like him are as valid a qualification to assess striped bass stocks as any biologist with a degree and we feel that this has NOT been taken into account.
The ASMFC is accepting public comments now through September 30th and I strongly urge everyone in the NJFishing community to go to their website www.asmfc.org and read the proposals offered. Though status quo is not one of the official options that is our "write in" vote. The least of all evils is option 7, which is 1 fish at 28-34 inches and one fish over 36 inches. I guess we'll have to throw back the 34 and 1/16th inch to 35 and 15/16th inchers.
Like I said, it's the lesser of the many evils.
Speak up, folks! Let your opinions be known!

www.asmfc.org look in the "Breaking News" list on the right hand side of the webpage, Striped Bass Addendum IV