It’s two o’clock in the morning. A gentle breeze ruffles the water, and the moon, with a few sparse stars, look on while a lone fisherman heads out to sea. For Breece Gahl, commercial fisherman and owner of Wilmington’s Fresh 2U Seafood, it’s just another day at the office.
 
Gahl is something of an anomaly in the area's commercial fishing industry. He’s in his mid-30s and has fished for profit for about three years. Many of the area’s local commercial fisherman are older, have fished commercially for decades and come from a long line of commercial fishermen. They, like Gahl, wouldn’t dream of doing anything else.
 
“It’s a great way to make a good, honest living,” Gahl said. “It’s fun, and it’s always a challenge.”
 
Though commercial fishermen are getting premium prices for their fish, the industry in the Cape Fear area and the state faces two significant challenges: It’s mired in a controversy that has no easy answers – the question of declining fish stock – and the decreasing number of commercial fishermen.
 
Dwindling fish stock has created some rough sailing for the fishermen.
 
A number of regulations, due in part from the battle between the commercial and recreational fishing industries over who is causing the problem, restrict their methods and curtail the seasons for specified species.
 
The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission sent two such regulations to the state legislature for consideration in February.
 
The “Commercial Fishing License Reform” measure states that commercial fishermen must harvest 1,000 pounds of fish or make 15 registered trips in any two of a fiveyear period. Otherwise, their license would be deactivated and eventually put back into the pool. Also, the fee for a commercial fishing license, under the proposal, would double from $400 to $800 a year.
 
The second measure, dubbed “Let Them Spawn,” would set minimum size limits for fish such as spot, Atlantic croaker, kingfishes, striped mullet and southern flounder to ensure that at least 75% of each year’s harvest spawns at least once.
 
Neither of the proposals has many adherents among commercial fishermen. Though the licensing changes would likely have little impact on full-time commercial fishermen who fish for a variety of species, it could contribute to a decline in the total number of commercial fishermen.
 
However, because part-time fishermen are more subject to bad weather, it could be more difficult for them to meet these stipulations, according to Bret Blackburn, head of purchasing, sales and distribution for Blackburn Brothers Fresh Seafood of Carolina Beach and Rocky Point.
 
The proposals also make it harder for newbies to get into commercial fishing, said Sam Romano, co-owner of Seaview Crab Co., who sits on the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission. Romano added that hiking license fees after the hurricane would be especially egregious.


 
“The regulations seem to be aimed at reducing commercial fishing instead of looking at it as a positive,” he said.
 
The spawning regulation also has drawn criticism from commercial fishermen, who say it doesn’t take into account long-term fluctuations and cycles fish supplies regularly experience.
 
As such, some in the industry argue, this regulation is like others that don’t always reflect commercial fishermen’s reality: They easily locate fish that are believed to be in short supply.
 
Gahl is a good example. He said he has no trouble finding fish and has never come anywhere near the limit on southern flounder.
 
Therein lies the crux of the problem. Is fish stock declining or not? Romano said not necessarily and that some regulations that limit fish size or restrict the season for certain species should be studied more extensively. Southern flounder, which some say is being over-fished, is one such species, he added.
 
“The stock assessments for southern flounder are incomplete,” Romano said. “The scientific community is tasked with coming up with a number based on limited data collection methods. … Based on their assessment, for the past 20 years we’d never have a sustainable southern flounder harvest. But it’s stayed about the same. If we were seeing this crash of the fisheries, we wouldn’t be catching fish anymore.”
 
However, fishery oversight groups, recreational fishermen and some commercial fishermen maintain that regulations are needed to protect a shrinking resource.
 
Of the 13 species tracked on stock status reports, eight are listed as of concern, one is depleted, two are unknown and one is in recovery, said Cameron Boltes, the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission’s recreational fishing industry representative. Boltes added that the commission’s data is some of the best in the country.
 
“The biggest issue is protecting the resource,” he said. “There does not seem to be the fish there were 10 years ago, and stock status reports support that.”
 
Lee Parsons, owner of the fishing charter Gottafly Guide Service, backs Boltes’ assertions. He says he’s not catching as many fish as he used to, a problem he blames on both commercial and recreational fishermen who don’t follow regulations and fishery mismanagement.
 
The only way to ensure future generations will be able to enjoy the sport is through regulations, Parsons said.
 
“They’re starting to talk about a moratorium on flounder,” he added. “I don’t want to see that, but if that’s what it takes to cure the fishery, by all means, stick it on them.”
 
Even Blackburn, who opposed regulations in the past, now supports them. He credits regulations for restoring stock and, by doing so, saving the fishing industry.
 
“Even though it was painful, I’m seeing things rebound,” he says. “I’m a big fan of anything that will protect our resources without hurting commercial fishing.”
 
The other issue threatening the industry is the declining number of commercial fishermen. Statistics from the fisheries commission show that issued commercial fishing licenses have declined from almost 6,000 in 2008 to about 4,800 in 2018.
 
Commercial fishermen first began to leave the industry about 20 years ago, Blackburn said. That’s when regulations were enacted that prevented fishermen from fishing year-round, a situation that cut into their ability to get product.
 
But that’s only one reason area commercial fishermen abandon ship. Commercial fishing is hard. It takes talent, skill and perseverance. Add to that time away from family, the danger, reliance on weather conditions, competition from corporations and rising fuel prices, and the job can be daunting. Finally, commercial fishermen are aging out, and fewer young people are willing to do the job.
 
However, local commercial fishermen who remain can make a profit, according to Blackburn. They’re getting a good price for their fish – a trend that shows no signs of reversing, he adds.