Virginia Legislature House Bill 19 in Richmond to create a comprehensive study of the ongoing ecology, fishery impacts, and economic and environmental issues with Atlantic menhaden was “carried” over and killed for 2024 consideration by The House Rules Committee on Jan. 29. It must be reintroduced next year to move forward.
This has environmental and sportfishing stakeholders up in arms, blaming lobby efforts and lack of support by the Chesapeake Bay’s only menhaden reduction fishery, Omega Protein. According to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF), “House Bill 19 would have enabled a wide scale study of menhaden populations in the Bay that would shed light on the overall health of the fish species.”
“Omega Protein previously backed the development of a scientific framework for a local menhaden population study,” stated the CBF release. “But as the 2024 legislative session progressed, the company’s lobbying efforts paved the way for lawmakers to punt funding the study into next year.”
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