As Louisiana’s Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) Commission prepared to revisit coastal buffer rules for the state’s menhaden fishery on November 6, tensions between recreational and commercial fishermen are reaching a breaking point.
According to a WBRZ report, recreational anglers plan to attend the Baton Rouge meeting in force, urging regulators not to roll back the half-mile no-fishing zones established earlier this year.
The LDWF introduced the buffer zones in February 2024 to limit where menhaden boats can deploy their purse seine nets. The rules were designed to reduce bycatch of redfish and speckled trout, which many recreational fishermen say are being caught and killed in alarming numbers. LDWF’s own study found that more than 240,000 speckled trout and 22,000 red drum were killed during the 2024 menhaden season…