ASMFC has scheduled public hearings to collect public comment on reducing the industrial menhaden harvest on Chesapeake Bay by 50% and other reductions on the fishery. Photo by Larry Chowning
Key Takeaways
ASMFC is considering cutting the Chesapeake Bay menhaden reduction fishery cap by up to 50 percent and spreading harvest more evenly across the season.
Public hearings begin Sept. 15, with comments accepted through Oct. 9.
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), coastal states of Maine through Virginia, have scheduled hearings to gather public input on Draft Addendum II to Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden.
The Draft Addendum considers options to reduce the Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap (Bay Cap) by up to 50 percent and distribute the cap more evenly throughout the fishing season. The current harvest cap for industrial fishing inside the bay is 51,000 metric tons annually.
ASMFC officials said that the options aim to alleviate a concentration of effort that may be affecting other fisheries within the Bay and other potential ecological impacts. The options are aimed at Omega Protein and Ocean Harvesters of Reedville, Va., the only menhaden reduction fishery firms on the East Coast.
ASMFC initiated the Draft Addendum in response to concerns regarding declining pound net harvest and catch per unit effort in the Bay in recent years, coinciding with an increase in the concentration of reduction harvest in the summer months, and the possible downstream effects on menhaden predators, it was stated in a ASMFC news release.
The Draft Addendum also includes options that link the Bay Cap to the coast-wide total allowable catch to maintain a more fixed proportion between the two, as well as options to distribute the Bay Cap into three quota periods to prevent a concentration of reduction harvest in the spring and summer of the fishing season, it stated.
Some hearings will be conducted in-person, some will be hybrid, and others will be conducted via webinar. The press release states that if unable to participate in a state’s scheduled hearing, citizens can participate in any of the virtual hearings. The public hearings will be held in-person in Virginia on September 19, 10 a.m. to noon, Northumberland High School, 201 Academic Lane, Heathsville, Va.; and September 28, 6 p.m.-8 p.m., VMRC office, 380 Fensick Rd. Building 96, Fort Monroe, Va.
Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources and Potomac River Fisheries Commission in-person hearing will be on September 15 from 6-8 p.m. at the Annapolis High School Auditorium, 2700 Riva Road, Annapolis, Md.
New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation and Connecticut Dept. of Energy and Environmental Protection will hold a hybrid hearing on Sept. 16 from 6-8 p.m. at NYSDEC Division of Marine Resources, 123 Kings Park Blvd (inside Nissequogue River State Park), Kings Park, N.Y.
The Maine Dept. of Natural Resources will hold a virtual hearing on Sept. 29, 6-8 p.m., and New Jersey Dept. of Environmental Protection and Delaware Division of Fish & Wildlife will hold a virtual hearing, Sept. 22, 6-8 p.m. ASMFC will hold a virtual General Public Hearing on Oct. 1. The website registration links for all states are available on the ASMFC website.
The public is encouraged to submit comments at any time during the public comment period but no later than 11:59 PM (EST) on October 9, 2026. A complete copy of the Draft Addendum, public hearing schedules, and ways to comment on the Atlantic Menhaden Draft Addendum II Action Tracker webpage.
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