A North Carolina Wildlife Federation petition to limit shrimp trawling is causing concern among residents and commercial shrimpers.

NCWF filed the petition with the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission in November, which seeks to designate all coastal waters as fish nurseries, as well as set rules for shrimp season and gear to use.

If the petition is accepted by Marine Fisheries, shrimp trawling would be banned between May 15 and Aug. 16, and designated trawling times would be reduced and banned altogether at nighttime, according to Heidi Smith, a board member for NC Catch, an organization that promotes and educates the public about the state’s seafood economy.

Smith said she thinks employing these restrictions would be a death sentence for the shrimping industry in North Carolina, as well as have devastating effects on jobs in packaging, distributing and sales.

“Shrimp is why many, many fish houses operate and exist. … Between blue crabs and shrimp, those are our most valuable seafood commodities,” she said.

Smith said a Fishery Management Plan is already in place, and the research attached to it, which was presented to the public Jan. 9, showed that bycatch decreased under the FMP, but there weren’t significant negative effects on shrimp harvesting.

“There is a process. There is a management plan in place, and those management plans are not derived overnight. They come after there’s a lot of research and looking at peer review studies and taking a lot of things into account, obviously habitat, and also good practices,” Smith said. “We want to implement things in such a way that people can adapt their livelihoods, their investment in equipment, and that everyone benefits.”

Despite these economic concerns, the Wildlife Federation has said it is seeking to strike a balance in this situation and bring the state “in line” with others along the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico, according to a press release.

“The Commission has a duty to adopt rules ‘in the public interest’ for the ‘protection, preservation, and enhancement’ of fish stocks adversely affected by bycatch in the shrimp trawl fishery. The Federation has proposed rules that would allow the continuation of a shrimp trawl fishery while protecting habitat, reducing bycatch, and contributing to the restoration of declining and depleted fish stocks,” the NCWF petition reads.

The petition also states that the Wildlife Federation does not think the current management plan adequately protects fish habitats.

“Currently, tens of millions of juvenile fish fall victim to shrimp trawl bycatch each year, and therefore do not spawn, replace themselves, and contribute to the adult population. Increasing juvenile recruitment is essential to rebuilding the stock of these species,” the petition reads.

Smith said NC Catch thinks NCWF should support the FMP research already in place and help continue it, especially in light of the positive results presented Jan. 9.

“Why not collaborate, participate and help fund that research, rather than coming out with something that is so egregious?” Smith said.

A Marine Fisheries Commission public hearing will be held today at 12:30 p.m. at the New Bern Convention Center, 203 S. Front St., New Bern.