Commission to act on proposed Atlantic bonito management

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission is expected to vote on proposed language for Atlantic bonito management when it meets May 13-14 in New Bern.

The meeting at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel, 100 Middle St., is open to the public and will be livestreamed on YouTube.

During its February meeting, the commission chose its preferred management option and associated proposed rulemaking language for the management of Atlantic bonito. The expected action will be to approve a notice of text for rulemaking for the adoption of 15A NCAC 03M .0524. Approval would begin the formal rulemaking process, which requires a 60-day public comment period that would occur later this year.

Also on the agenda are the following:

• A presentation by Dr. Joel Fodrie on the legislative study of coastal and marine fisheries.
• A presentation on the background, life history and fishery characterization of kingfishes in North Carolina.
• An update on the blue crab benchmark stock assessment process and information about the associated public webinar.
• A presentation on the Deepwater Oyster Recovery Areas adopted in the Eastern Oyster Fishery Management Plan Amendment 5.
• Updates on currently open and ongoing implementation of adopted fishery management plans.

The meeting will begin at 1 p.m. May 13, and at 9 a.m. May 14. The commission will accept public comments beginning at 6 p.m. Wednesday and at 9 a.m. Thursday.

For those who choose to speak at in-person public comment sessions, complete the following steps:

• Sign up at the hotel prior to the public comment sessions.
• To facilitate the meeting, and to accommodate as many speakers as possible, the chair will limit each speaker to three minutes.
• Those making comments will be asked to speak only once, either Wednesday evening or Thursday morning, but not during both public comment periods.
• Those who wish to submit handouts to the commission during the public comment period should bring at least 12 copies to the meeting.

People can also submit written comments via the following methods:

• An online form on the Marine Fisheries Commission Meetings webpage.
• Mail to Marine Fisheries Commission Meeting Comments, P.O. Box 769, Morehead City, NC 28557.
• A hard copy dropped off at the Division of Marine Fisheries’ Morehead City Headquarters Office at 3441 Arendell St., Morehead City.

The deadline to submit written comments for this meeting is 4 p.m. on Monday, May 11.

A full agenda and meeting materials, as well as a link to the YouTube livestream, are available on the Marine Fisheries Commission Meetings webpage.