More Fishing Regulations to come?

I read in today’s paper there is a fuss over yellow perch fishing. So much in fact the State of Maryland is stepping in to listen to arguments from the recreational firemen and the commercial fisherman. I remember catching yellow perch a plenty when I lived near the Nanticoke River. As I recall they were excellent for frying. A plate full of fried perch and some hush puppies or corndodgers with honey drizzled over the top made a great meal.

Now it seems the commercial fishermen are taking more than their share and the harvest doesn’t stay locally. Of course they have to sell where the market is and I can’t blame them for that, however the plying of their trade has apparently retarded the bounty for the local recreational sports fisherman.
This is not new. I also remember when there were Rockfish aplenty in the Nanticoke and the Chesapeake Bay. The Rock, or Stripped Bass if you prefer, were over fished to the point the State was required to put strict limits on harvesting them. I can tell you from experience, it wasn’t the sport fisherman that created this problem. I saw on many occasions what was brought up in the commercial gill nets. What the business fisherman did to the Rock population was the real reason for the decline. Because of that all fishermen suffered. Rock population has been on a rebound but tight regulations are still in place.

It’s sad that more regulation must be created in order to prevent the extinction of a species. But such is life. Someone must step up to control those that cannot control themselves.