Bush to End Commercial Harvest of Stripers, Redfish

Even the most discouraged striper and redfish anglers may finally have something nice to say about the White House. President Bush will announce in his weekly radio address today that the federal government will prohibit the commercial harvest of stripers and redfish in in territorial waters. It will also encourage states who haven’t already given the two species gamefish status to do so. While most U.S. states had banned the commercial fishing of redfish years ago, Mississippi still allows it. “The two main sections of the order charge the Secretary of Commerce with encouraging states to declare the two species as game fish in state waters and prohibit the sale of striped bass and red drum caught within the Exclusive Economic Zone of the United States off the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. The EEZ extends 200 miles beyond state waters.” Jeff Dute in Alabama’s Press-Register.