Three advisory committees to the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission will meet this month to accept public comment, discuss, and vote on recommendations for adaptive management for the draft Blue Crab Fishery Management Plan Amendment 3 Revision.

The Draft Amendment 3 Revision contains options for adaptive management to address overall declining trends in the blue crab stock. These trends indicate that measures adopted in Amendment 3 are not working as intended and are not meeting sustainability objectives.

Options in the draft revision include seasonal closures and trip limits.

The meetings are scheduled as follows:

Northern Regional Advisory Committee
Tuesday, March 18 at 6:00 p.m.
Washington Civic Center
110 Gladden Street
Washington, NC 27889

Southern Regional Advisory Committee
Wednesday, March 19 at 6:00 p.m.
New Hanover Arboretum Education Center
6206 Oleander Drive
Wilmington, NC 28403

Shellfish/Crustacean Advisory Committee
Thursday, March 20 at 6:00 p.m.
Dare County Administration Building
954 Marshall C. Collins Drive
Manteo, NC 27954

The meetings will begin at 6 p.m., but Division of Marine Fisheries staff will be available prior to the meeting for questions from the public.

Public comment and recommendations from the committees will be considered by the Marine Fisheries Commission at its May business meeting.

For more information, see the Information on Blue Crab Adaptive Management webpage or contact Robert Corbett at Robert.Corbett@deq.nc.gov or 252-381-6010 at the Division of Marine Fisheries’ Elizabeth City Office or McLean Seward at McLean.Seward@deq.nc.gov or 910-796-7289 in the Wilmington Office.