Despite mounting troubling signs about the health of the Chesapeake Bay’s menhaden population, this legislative session Virginia lawmakers failed to approve three separate efforts to fund a study intended to answer long-standing questions about the Bay’s menhaden.
The Commonwealth’s long wait for the necessary science into the Commonwealth’s largest fishery and most important fish in the Bay persists.
Atlantic menhaden are the target of Virginia’s largest commercial fishery, run by a company called Omega Protein, and its affiliates. Typically turned into fishmeal and fish oil products in a process known as “reduction fishing,” the small schooling fish also are a key food for iconic predators like striped bass, bluefish, and ospreys. All other states have banned the practice of reduction fishing.
After thousands of menhaden and gamefish washed up on Virginia shores during high-profile fish spills by Omega Protein, the General Assembly passed legislation in 2023 requiring plans for studying menhaden populations in Virginia waters. This was backed by Omega Protein. But in early 2024, Virginia lawmakers failed to pass a bill that would have funded this necessary research.
This year, Delegate Paul Milde spearheaded one effort for the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) to complete the $3 million three-year study of the ecology, fishery impacts, and economic importance of the menhaden population in Virginia. That House Bill 2713 and the accompanying budget amendment Item 148 #4h failed to advance from the House.
Another effort by Delegate Betsy Carr slotted the first year of funding for the study in the state budget to VIMS, but this measure was killed during budget negotiations.
The study would address critical data gaps, including the menhaden population within the Bay and the impacts of “reduction” fishing.
In large part due to reduction fishing, more than 70 percent of all commercial menhaden harvest lands in Virginia. But menhaden management continues to rely on coastwide data that doesn’t paint a full picture of how the fishery affects fish in Virginia. A lack of Bay-specific data hinders effective management decisions and jeopardizes the health of this keystone species and renowned estuary.
Robust menhaden populations are essential to Virginia’s $980 million recreational fishing economy, supporting valuable sportfish like striped bass. Yet troubling signs continue to mount, including starving osprey in areas of the Bay where they depend on menhaden for food.
Chesapeake Bay Foundation Virginia Executive Director Chris Moore released the following statement:
“This is not just bad news for fishermen, but bad news for a Chesapeake Bay ecosystem that continues to scream warnings about menhaden. For years, we’ve lacked the baseline knowledge we need to establish robust and lasting sustainability for menhaden in the Chesapeake Bay. Unfortunately, one foreign-owned entity continues to stand in the way of good science—Omega Protein, the largest harvester of menhaden on the Atlantic Coast.”
“We are deeply disappointed that once again Omega Protein and their lobbyists have thwarted the good faith efforts to develop the necessary science for the Chesapeake Bay. Perhaps even more frustrating is the fact they twice previously supported the proposed approach to studying many of the most pressing questions related to the Commonwealth’s menhaden resource. This delay will not be received well by the public, who has long supported better menhaden science for the region.”
Virginia Communications & Media Relations Manager, CBF
[email protected]
804-258-1567
