Wilmington Star Gets It Wrong

Following is a letter Pres Pate, Director of the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries, sent to the Wilmington Star regarding an article that ran in their paper on July 4. It was our understanding the Wilmington Star was going to run another story to set the record straight – to date we have not seen it. The misinformation conveyed by this newspaper has greatly upset people from not only the Wilmington area, but from around the state. Few people got past the innacurate headline and the lead that left them thinking our division was trying to get a permit to kill more more turtles. The fact that this misinformation got picked up by the Associated Press has not helped the situation. Even if the paper does the right thing and runs an article to correct their mistake, I doubt that will get the same state-wide coverage.

Nancy Fish, Public Affairs
N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries


Dear Editor:

I thought you and your readers would like to know the headline of the turtle article appearing in the July 4 edition of the Wilmington Star, written by Gareth McGrath, was incorrect. The mistake set an inaccurate tone for the remainder of the article on a highly sensitive matter.

The Division of Marine Fisheries has not asked the National Marine Fisheries Service to increase the number of authorized takes of threatened and endangered sea turtles in the Pamlico Sound shallow-water gill net flounder fishery, as your headline stated.

The major change in our application for an incidental take permit was to request a six-year permit, rather than the previous three-year permit. The federal authorized take level of turtles remains as it has for the last five years, since the inception of the program.

Although the National Marine Fisheries Service set the lethal incidental take at 100 turtles per year for the fall flounder fishery, we have not come close to that threshold in the last four years. Estimated mortalities from 2001–2004 have ranged from eight to 26 turtles per year. Those estimates are derived by expanding the number of observed takes, by the number of active fishermen and the time of the year. Actual observed mortalities from 2001-2004 have only ranged from one to four turtles per year.

I would like to stress North Carolina has remained in compliance with the 1973 Endangered Species Act, having found a way to minimize the take of turtles by limiting interactions with fishing gear during the turtles’ fall migration through Pamlico Sound. This year we have also asked to shift observer coverage to areas and times when there are greater turtle-fishermen interactions, and increase law enforcement patrols and fish house sampling.

In talks between my staff and Mr. McGrath for this article, the difficulty of striking a balance between protection of endangered species and the economic needs of coastal communities, was discussed at length. In fact, Mr. McGrath compared the turtle situation in Pamlico Sound to the reintroduction of the endangered red wolf in northeastern North Carolina, questioning if officials would shut down Hwy. 64 if a red wolf were hit by a motorist. There were also discussions on other human impacts to sea turtles, such as beach development, habitat loss and degradation, and propeller strikes – the number one cause of identifiable turtle deaths. These are all areas that also merit scrutiny and attention in order to continue rebuilding sea turtle populations.

Readers in your coverage area might also be interested to know about another measure we have recently taken to protect sea turtles. Effective June 20 –August 31, fishermen are required to stay with their gill nets at all times in the mouth of the Cape Fear River, to reduce gear interactions with a growing number of turtles in that waterway.

We are fortunate because it appears turtle stocks are rebounding along the East Coast. Now, we are faced with the dilemma of learning how to live with recovering turtle populations, while maintaining coastal livelihoods and economies.

Thank you for the opportunity to set the record straight.

Sincerely,

Preston P. Pate, Director
N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries

Wilmington Star Gets It Wrong

Following is a letter Pres Pate, Director of the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries, sent to the Wilmington Star regarding an article that ran in their paper on July 4. It was our understanding the Wilmington Star was going to run another story to set the record straight – to date we have not seen it. The misinformation conveyed by this newspaper has greatly upset people from not only the Wilmington area, but from around the state. Few people got past the innacurate headline and the lead that left them thinking our division was trying to get a permit to kill more more turtles. The fact that this misinformation got picked up by the Associated Press has not helped the situation. Even if the paper does the right thing and runs an article to correct their mistake, I doubt that will get the same state-wide coverage.

Nancy Fish, Public Affairs
N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries


Dear Editor:

I thought you and your readers would like to know the headline of the turtle article appearing in the July 4 edition of the Wilmington Star, written by Gareth McGrath, was incorrect. The mistake set an inaccurate tone for the remainder of the article on a highly sensitive matter.

The Division of Marine Fisheries has not asked the National Marine Fisheries Service to increase the number of authorized takes of threatened and endangered sea turtles in the Pamlico Sound shallow-water gill net flounder fishery, as your headline stated.

The major change in our application for an incidental take permit was to request a six-year permit, rather than the previous three-year permit. The federal authorized take level of turtles remains as it has for the last five years, since the inception of the program.

Although the National Marine Fisheries Service set the lethal incidental take at 100 turtles per year for the fall flounder fishery, we have not come close to that threshold in the last four years. Estimated mortalities from 2001–2004 have ranged from eight to 26 turtles per year. Those estimates are derived by expanding the number of observed takes, by the number of active fishermen and the time of the year. Actual observed mortalities from 2001-2004 have only ranged from one to four turtles per year.

I would like to stress North Carolina has remained in compliance with the 1973 Endangered Species Act, having found a way to minimize the take of turtles by limiting interactions with fishing gear during the turtles’ fall migration through Pamlico Sound. This year we have also asked to shift observer coverage to areas and times when there are greater turtle-fishermen interactions, and increase law enforcement patrols and fish house sampling.

In talks between my staff and Mr. McGrath for this article, the difficulty of striking a balance between protection of endangered species and the economic needs of coastal communities, was discussed at length. In fact, Mr. McGrath compared the turtle situation in Pamlico Sound to the reintroduction of the endangered red wolf in northeastern North Carolina, questioning if officials would shut down Hwy. 64 if a red wolf were hit by a motorist. There were also discussions on other human impacts to sea turtles, such as beach development, habitat loss and degradation, and propeller strikes – the number one cause of identifiable turtle deaths. These are all areas that also merit scrutiny and attention in order to continue rebuilding sea turtle populations.

Readers in your coverage area might also be interested to know about another measure we have recently taken to protect sea turtles. Effective June 20 –August 31, fishermen are required to stay with their gill nets at all times in the mouth of the Cape Fear River, to reduce gear interactions with a growing number of turtles in that waterway.

We are fortunate because it appears turtle stocks are rebounding along the East Coast. Now, we are faced with the dilemma of learning how to live with recovering turtle populations, while maintaining coastal livelihoods and economies.

Thank you for the opportunity to set the record straight.

Sincerely,

Preston P. Pate, Director
N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries