The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries has published its annual Fishery Management Plan Update, providing a summary of the status and management strategies for key coastal fish species based on data through 2024.
The update includes information about state, federal, and interstate managed species that North Carolina helps manage. Each report covers stock status, data trends, research needs, and management approaches.
For Southern Flounder, the South Atlantic stock remains overfished with overfishing ongoing. The review of the Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan (FMP) began in 2024 and is focused on increasing recreational access while maintaining rebuilding goals set by Amendment 3. Amendment 4 is expected to be adopted by the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission (MFC) in August 2025 and would speed up a shift to equal allocation between recreational and commercial sectors. Amendment 5 is being developed for longer-term management.
The Kingfishes FMP will undergo review in 2025. This process will include a thorough evaluation of available data and reconsideration of management triggers due to changes in survey methods.
Red Drum are managed under both state and interstate plans. A benchmark stock assessment completed by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) in 2024 found that the northern Red Drum stock, which includes North Carolina, is not overfished nor experiencing overfishing; however, some concerning trends have been noted. In response, the ASMFC Sciaenid’s Management Board has started developing Addendum II to address these issues. The state-level plan is also under review this year.
Blue Crab continues to face challenges despite adoption of Amendment 3 in February 2020 aimed at ending overfishing identified in a 2018 assessment. Stock decline has persisted since then, indicating further management changes may be needed. Options are scheduled for consideration by the MFC in November 2025 with another review planned for 2026.
For Spotted Seatrout, new rules were implemented through Amendment 1 adopted in March 2025. These measures include harvest closures on certain days for commercial fishing, a slot limit and reduced bag limit for recreational anglers, as well as adaptive management during cold stun events. Following a significant cold stun event in January 2025, all harvest was closed from January until July.
Eastern Oyster and Hard Clam amendments were adopted by the MFC in May 2025 but only cover wild harvests due to limited population data; aquaculture issues are now handled separately. For oysters, new recovery areas and rotational harvest sites have been established to balance habitat value with fishery needs. Mechanical harvesting methods for hard clams will be phased out by 2028.
Further details can be found on the Division’s Fishery Management Plans webpage: https://deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/marine-fisheries/fisheries-management-plans
“The Fishery Management Plan Update is a compilation of annual updates for each State, Federal and Interstate managed species for which North Carolina participates in development and adoption of the fishery management plan (FMP).”
“Each update contains information based on data through the previous calendar year, in this case, 2024, including: stock status; data trends; research needs; and management strategies.”
