N.C. opens large-mesh gill nets in southern units at 5:54 p.m. Sept. 29

North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries Proclamation M-20-2026 takes effect at 5:54 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026. It opens Management Units B (listed subunits only), C, D1 (Northern subunit only), D2, and E south of Management Unit A to gill nets with stretched mesh of 4 inches through 6½ inches. The order supersedes M-10-2026 and tracks Amendment 4 to the Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan plus the federal Incidental Take Permit for sea turtles and sturgeon.

Unit B opens only in named Shallow Water, Mainland, and West Bay restricted areas inside Pamlico Sound. Unit C covers the Pamlico, Pungo, Bay, and Neuse drainages and Pamlico Sound west of 76°30′ W. Northern D1 is the northern Core Sound strip; D2 runs Newport River and Bogue Sound west of the D1/D2 line; Unit E is everything from the Highway 58 Bridge to the South Carolina line. Areas not listed stay closed to that mesh band, and 4-inch to less than 6-inch stretch mesh stays closed except for the run-around, strike, drop, and drift exemptions in Section III.

Yardage caps, net height, float rules, overnight soak windows, and observer/OTSS requirements remain in the proclamation. Recreational Commercial Gear License holders still cannot use 4-inch through 6½-inch gill nets except under those Section III exemptions. Check the live M-type board before you set, and report sea turtle or sturgeon interactions within 24 hours at 252-515-5500 or 800-682-2632.

This is a The Gillnet news desk summary, not a reprint.

Source: N.C. DMF Proclamation M-20-2026 — Gill net restrictions, internal coastal and joint waters south of Management Unit A (issued Sept. 18, 2026; effective 5:54 p.m. Sept. 29, 2026).