Winter crab dredging is likely returning to Chesapeake Bay

Was banned in 2008 after crab numbers plummeted

Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC) voted 5-4 in June to repeal a ban on winter crab dredging; consider a limited entry fishery; and before officially opening the dredge season, begin research on the future of the fishery.

The decision came on the heels of Virginia’s Crab Management Advisory Committee (CMAC) in May voting 10-2 to recommend the fishery be reopened with a 1.5 million pound harvest cap.

Since the 2008 ban, commercial fishing lobbies have been working to bring the dredge fishery back, stating that it provides another fishery, besides oystering, in the winter for watermen; extends the Chesapeake Bay’s commercial winter picked-crab market to compete with surrounding states that allow winter dredging; and that the winter harvest has limited impact on the overall bay crab population.

The ban in 2008 was sparked in part by disturbing bay-wide crab survey results that showed in 2007 there were 251 million crabs in the bay, which was a drop from an 852 million high in 1993. Even more disturbing was that there were consistently low population figures from 1998 to 2007. The bay’s 2024 crab population estimate is that there are 317 million crabs, less than the 323 million estimate in 2023.

The decision to consider reopening the fishery sparked concerns from Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) that issued a statement saying it “strongly disagrees with Virginia’s decision.”