The Reedville as it sank about 12:15 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 13 on Reef Site No. 11 (the Redbird Reef) /DNREC photo

DNREC continued to broaden the recreational allure of Delaware’s renowned artificial reef system today by sinking the Reedville, originally a World War II and Korean Conflict-era coastal freighter and supply ship at a reef site 16 miles offshore and with readings of *38 40.423’N 74* 44.295’ W at a depth of 87 feet. The Reedville was converted to a commercial fishing vessel after military decommissioning and has found another new life starting at 12:18 EDT as fish habitat on the ocean floor through DNREC’s artificial reef program.

The sinking of the 180-foot long Reedville was the reef program’s first deployment of a vessel since a retired Chesapeake Bay cruise ship was sunk late last year onto Reef Site No. 11. That came after the nationally-publicized and viral-videoed 2018 sinking of the retired Lewes-Cape May, N.J. ferry Twin Capes onto the Del-Jersey-Land Reef, second only to Reef Site No. 11 as a popular angling destination. Because of the ship’s profile featuring a cavernous hold and 38-foot keel to top of stack, the Reedville is expected to be a boon to two fisheries prominent in Delaware inshore waters, black sea bass and tautog.

“We continue to enhance the angling and recreational diving experience in Delaware by expanding our reef system, which includes 14 separate reef sites in the Delaware Bay and along the Atlantic Coast,” said DNREC Secretary Shawn Garvin. “When we sank Twin Capes two years ago as a centerpiece of the system, it was unmatched as an artificial reef for both providing fish habitat and a spectacular dive with its five decks for underwater exploration. Now with the Reedville, we’ve got four reefed vessels of the same class and we are putting it in a place that will be accessible, attract the most fish and where divers will want to explore, too.”

Reedville joins three other former menhaden boats and onetime military vessels classified as fast-supply coastal freighters now residing on Delaware reefs: the Shearwater, Gregory S. Poole and Atlantic Mist on the Del-Jersey-Land Inshore Reef, so called because it is roughly equidistant from ports of departure in each of the three states the reef’s name entails. The Reedville is the first such ship to be placed on Reef Site No. 11, better known to anglers as the Redbird Reef because it largely consists of 997 retired New York City “redbird” subway cars. The Redbird Reef covers 1.3 square miles of ocean floor and besides fish habitat created by the subway cars, includes the 215-foot-long Chesapeake Bay cruise ship, 86 US Army tanks, eight tugboats, a fishing trawler, and two barges.

The Reedville’s sinking was carried out by Norfolk, Va.-based marine contractor Coleen Marine, which has handled numerous ship and vessel reef deployments over the DNREC program’s existence at many of Delaware’s 14 permitted artificial reef sites after receiving approvals from the EPA for environmental cleanliness and from the US Coast Guard. DNREC’s Division of Fish and Wildlife, which oversees the reef program, paid $175,000 in federal Sport Fish Restoration funds to buy Reedville from Coleen Marine after the ship settled onto the Redbird Reef.

Originally a Navy ship then an Army FS (freight and supply)-class vessel, the Reedville in its commercial incarnation was renamed for the hub of the menhaden industry, Reedville, Va. – itself named after Capt. Elijah W. Reed, whose process for extracting fish oil from menhaden in the 19th century enriched him and earned Reedville (population: 500) the label of the wealthiest town in America.

About DNREC

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control protects and manages the state’s natural resources, protects public health, provides outdoor recreational opportunities, and educates Delawareans about the environment. The Division of Fish and Wildlife conserves and manages Delaware’s fish and wildlife and their habitats, and provides fishing, hunting, wildlife viewing and boating access on nearly 65,000 acres of public land. For more information, visit the website and connect with DNREC on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.

Media Contacts: Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov; Nikki Lavoie, nikki.lavoie@delaware.gov

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DOVER – DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife will host an Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) public hearing on a proposed amendment to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 14 in the DNREC Auditorium, 89 Kings Highway, Dover, DE 19901.

Draft Amendment 3 seeks to manage the resource in a way that balances menhaden’s ecological role as a prey species with the needs of all user groups. The amendment considers the use of ecosystem reference points (ERPs) to manage the resource, and also presents management options for the commercial menhaden fishery.

ASMFC’s 2015 Benchmark Stock Assessment Report identified the development of ERPs as a high priority for Atlantic menhaden management. Menhaden play an important role in the marine ecosystem as prey for a variety of species including larger fish (weakfish, striped bass), birds (bald eagles, osprey), and marine mammals (humpback whales, bottlenose dolphins). As a result, changes in the abundance of menhaden may impact predator populations, particularly if availability of other prey is limited. ERPs provide a method to assess the status of menhaden within the broad ecosystem context.

To review the draft amendment on the ASMFC website, click Atlantic Menhaden Draft Amendment 3. Anglers and other interested parties are encouraged to provide input on the draft amendment by attending the state public hearing or providing written comment. Written public comment will be accepted until 5 p.m. Oct. 20, 2017 and may be mailed to Megan Ware, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, 1050 N. Highland St, Suite A-N, Arlington, VA 22201; faxed to 703-842-0741 or emailed to comments@asmfc.org, subject line: Draft Amendment 3.

Final action on the Amendment, as well as setting the 2018 total allowable catch limit, is scheduled for Nov. 14 at the BWI Airport Marriott, 1743 West Nursery Road, Linthicum, Md. For more information, please contact Megan Ware at mware@asmfc.org or 703-842-0740.

For more information about the Dover hearing, contact DNREC’s Fisheries Section at 302-739-9914.

Vol. 47, No. 198

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DOVER – DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife will host an Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) public hearing on a draft addendum to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden at 6 p.m., Wednesday, July 6 in the DNREC Auditorium, Richardson & Robbins Building, 89 Kings Highway, Dover, DE 19901.

The draft addendum proposes modifying the current plan’s bycatch allowance provision by allowing two licensed commercial fishermen to harvest up to 12,000 pounds of menhaden bycatch when working from the same vessel and fishing with stationary, multi‐species gear, limited to one vessel trip per day. Bycatch represents less than 2 percent of the total coastwide landings.

The practice of two licensed commercial fishermen working together from the same vessel to harvest Atlantic menhaden primarily occurs in the Chesapeake Bay pound net fishery. This practice enables the fishermen to pool resources for fuel and crew. However, the practice is currently constrained by the plan’s bycatch allowance provision, which includes a 6,000 pound per vessel per day limit. The ASMFC is seeking comment on whether the provision should be revised to accommodate the interests of fixed‐gear fishermen who work together, as authorized by the states and jurisdictions in which they fish.

The intent of the draft addendum is to add flexibility to one element of the bycatch allowance provision while the Atlantic Menhaden Management Board, of which Delaware is a member, prepares to address menhaden management more comprehensively through the development of an additional addendum to the plan over the next two years.

Anglers and other interested groups are encouraged to provide input on the draft addendum either by attending state public hearings or providing written comment. The draft addendum is posted at http://www.asmfc.org/uploads/file/573dd50fAtlMenhadenDraftAddendumI_PublicComment_May2016.pdf or on the Commission’s website, www.asmfc.org, under Public Input.

Public comment will be accepted until 5 p.m. Monday, July 11, 2016 and should be sent to Megan Ware, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, 1050 N. Highland Street, Suite A‐N, Arlington, VA 22201; faxed to 703-842-0741 or emailed to mware@asmfc.org (Subject line: Draft Addendum I).

Contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

Vol. 46, No. 246