Economic Aspects Of Allocating Striped Bass Among Competing User Groups In Virginia

Striped bass, "Morone saxatilis", has been one of the most important species to both recreational anglers and consumers in the eastern U. S. During the 1970s and 1980s, storms, loss of habitat, and overharvesting resulted in a serious decline of the population. In an effort to rebuild the resource, extremely restrictive regulations were implemented by the Atlantic State Marine Fisheries Commission and Congress. By 1997, the resource had apparently recovered to its highest level since 1880. Anglers and commercial fishers began to request changes in the existing regulations to allow more fish to be harvested or a decrease in the minimum legal size limit. Despite the apparent increase in the resource, there is an increasing conflict between commercial and recreational interests. This report provides the results of an examination of the potential economic and societal values and impacts of alternative allocations of striped bass among the commercial and recreational user groups. Grant no. NA56RG0141