DNR Announces 2009 Summer Flounder Regulations

Annapolis, MD – The Maryland Department of Natural Resources
(DNR) Department of Fisheries today announced new regulations for
the 2009 summer flounder fishery.

The new 2009 recreational summer flounder regulations will
be:

Creel and Size Limit (Split Management):

– Atlantic Ocean and Coastal Bays (3 fish @ 18 inch minimum
size)

– Chesapeake Bay (1 fish @ 16.5 inch minimum size)

The 2009 recreational summer flounder season will run from April
15 until September 13.

The new limits will be submitted as emergency regulations and
DNR plans to close the recreational summer flounder fishery via
public notice this week. The fishery will reopen when the emergency
regulations become effective.

DNR is required to reduce the 2009 recreational summer flounder
catch in Maryland by 32%. This reduction is necessary to mitigate
exceeding harvest targets last year.

DNR believes that these regulations will achieve the required
reduction in the fishery, attain the recreational harvest target of
61,000 fish and minimize the impact both on recreational anglers
and businesses that rely on the summer flounder fishery.

Various options for the 2009 recreational season were approved
by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and presented to
the Coastal Fisheries Advisory Committee, the Sportfish Advisory
Commission and the general public at an informational meeting held
in Ocean City, Maryland last month. Approximately 100 people
attended the meeting.

More information is available online at www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries.

For more information, please contact Steve Doctor at 410 – 213
-1531 or Mike Luisi at 410 -260 – 8341.