Back in 2015, Atlantic County received a consultant report that pretty much said: DIVERSIFY or die. It told us to stop relying so much on ONE INDUSTRY: casinos, for sustenance. Instead, we should place more emphasis on our natural assets. One of them being the ocean and stuff that comes out of it….like fish.
Another asset that needs to be leveraged better is our beaches.
Both of these assets, fishing & beaches, are under attack from outside concerns with little or no local skin in the game.
Own a home at the shore? Make a living from seashore real estate? Have a pizza shop? Maybe you sell t-shirts or teach surfing lessons.
Summertime dune building & goofy fishing rules will affect your livelihood.
Federal experts think more cuts are needed to slow a wrongly perceived decline in the flounder population. Heavily disputed data suggests that NJ has been experiencing over-fishing since 2008. That’s just NOT TRUE. The Press of Atlantic City doesn’t help by publishing these highly questionable reports.
Click to listen: Dick Herb from the Marine Fishery Council, and Congressman Frank LoBiondo, as heard on the ‘Shep on Fishing’ radio show.
Shep on Fishing 5.13.17