The agency will continue to focus on minimizing regulatory burden that inhibits normal business operations and promote efficiency in the utilization of fishery resources.

The Marine Resources Commission (MRC) expects increased involvement of federal and interstate organizations in the resource management process, with a trend toward increased fishery regulations and resource data collection and monitoring in a multispecies ecosystem context, requiring substantially more science and information than is currently available. New interstate and regional management policies on the taking of menhaden, which may pose significant personnel and financial hardship for the Commonwealth, as well as federal mandates that could affect management of sturgeon, summer flounder, striped bass, sea turtles and sea mammals.

The Commission is committed in its efforts to replenish Virginia's oyster resources and to support increasing shellfish aquaculture activities.

The ASMFC imposed a requirement to monitor a 2013 menhaden quota resulting in a 20 percent reduction in menhaden landings for Virginia. When stock assessments showed an increasingly healthy menhaden stock, quotas were relaxed but still resulted in an economic loss for the industry over landings levels prior to 2013.   Virginia is now allocated 78.66 percent of the coast wide landings quota for menhaden, following a recent allocation decision in late 2017 by the ASMFC. Previously Virginia enjoyed an almost 86 percent share of the coast wide allowable landings of menhaden.

The agency continues its efforts to establish a take reduction plan for the endangered sturgeon and endangered or threatened sea turtles and expects substantial economic impacts to Virginia’s gill net fishery once the plan is accepted by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).  

A longer term risk for Virginia’s fishery stocks is environmental change caused by climate shifts.  Many of the fish species targeted by Virginia fishermen are migratory, with some stocks having a center of abundance further south or north of the Chesapeake Bay.  Climate change is expected to substantially affect abundance and distribution of migratory species, for popular species like summer flounder, black sea bass and croaker. This will mean less fish available for harvest in the Bay. Temperature and sea level rise will impact habitat vital to juvenile fish, and water acidification will affect shellfish stocks.

The Marine Police expect an increased responsibility for homeland defense at the Ports of Hampton Roads, as well as continued search and rescue work and 24 hour, 7 day a week coverage of the waterways served by MRC. As the Virginia’s oyster resource continues to improve, there will be a growing need for the protection of that resource from poaching from public waters and condemned shellfish areas. The Virginia Marine Police placed, and will continue to place, a priority on enforcement in these areas.

With the huge success now occurring with Virginia’s oyster industry, the agency expects to see an increased emphasis on regulation and enforcement to comply with federal National Shellfish Sanitation Program mandates and to ensure that the State’s oyster stock is safeguarded.

The number of requests for habitat permits is expected to grow commensurate with population increases and development in Tidewater, generating an increased need to balance both the public and the private interests of the marine resources of the state.

A marked increase in the number of applications for oyster ground leases is expected and this will result in all associated issues being handled by small existing staff.

There are several agency responsibilities that continue to require existing employees to continue to absorb additional duties for: State-owned bottomlands above the Fall Line, Eastern Shore marshes, aquaculture, finance and contracting, search and rescue, patrol work, homeland defense, emergency preparedness, interstate and quota based fisheries management, and complex conservation efforts for an ever-increasing number of finfish species. This additional workload will become more problematic as many long-term employees with much institutional knowledge are expected to retire within the next five years or less. More complex review of shellfish aquaculture leasing and permitting issues continue to strain the current management team tasked with these issues.

Over the last decade, the use of non-general fund (NGF) revenue from the sale of a variety of licenses, permit and dredge fees has increasingly replaced use of General Fund (GF) dollars. Many key management and regulatory functions are now dependent on these less stable sources of funding. This reduces the agency’s ability to use these NGF for: fishery research, surveys, monitoring and stock assessments that provide the information to support MRC management and regulatory work that ensure Virginia’s full compliance with fishery plans from the interstate regional fisheries management organizations, and for projects to remove waterways obstructions from Virginia’s tidal waters.