Anglers here in South Carolina may think otherwise, but when compared to other coastal states, we’re pretty much run-of-the-mill.

The number of fish caught and kept obviously changes from year to year, but over the past decade, fishing totals have remained pretty level.

Looking at NOAA’s data below, it’s amazing New York has more fishermen on Coney Island, Sheepshead Bay, or wherever they’re fishing from, than we do here in South Carolina, but thanks to the Magnuson-Stevens Act, efforts have been put in place to ensure there will always be plenty of fish for us to while our time away with – something South Carolina anglers have no problem doing!

Each sector provides about $30 billion in economic benefit to the nation, of which only $595 million could be attributed to saltwater fishing here in South Carolina.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that a few anglers don’t make up for a lot of residents, but that’s not what this graph is illustrating.

Of course, this data reflects better economic times here in America since it’s from 2006, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see lower numbers in NOAA’s next release.

Related Post(s)

1. NOAA’s final guidance on Annual Catch Limits to end overfishing
2. New striped bass regulations in effect
3. Midlands angler breaks bullhead catfish record
4. Saltwater Recreational Fishing License changes
5. CA’s CleanFish looking to further their $20M business here in SC
6. Boats, Bass, and Bubba
7. Red snapper fishing may soon be illegal
8. We will all windup eating fish from selective breeding
9. 2009 S.C. tide table
10. Saluda River Trout Stocking 2008