The commercial fishing industry of the Albemarle Area is 

 plagued with problems of all kinds. The annual catch decreases 

 and increases because of weather, pollution, dredging and economic 

 restrictions from a lack of capital. The types of fish caught 

 varies each year making it necessary for fishermen to be equipped 

 to fish for several different types of seafoods Landing points 

 are dispersed throughout the area making it difficult to establish 

 processing of fishery products. The off-shore fishery is hampered 

 by the instability of Oregon Inlet, and sound fishing has been 

 declining in recent years. In spite of these problems, the number 

 of fishermen has remained about the same and the total value of the 

 catch has increased slightly. 



The herring catch is the most important one in the Albemarle 

 Sound, followed by miscellaneous food fish. The herring Industry 

 processes large volumes of fish but the total value of its product 

 has been decreasing in recent years. With a rise in incomes and 

 the availability of a wide range of meats there has been a decline 

 in consumer demand for salt herring. One dealer has been success- 

 ful in selling herring for bait, and another is packaging herring 

 in sealed plastic bags for sale to the housewife. The total catch 

 of herring has been fluctuating. From 1961 to 1965, total poundage 

 has averaged about 12 million pounds, ranging from a low of 7 

 million pounds to a high of 15 million. The local fishermen feel 

 that this pattern of fluction is a result of pollution. It is 

 recommended that an extensive study be made of this to determine 

 the cause of the variations. 



The Albemarle Sound area is said to have a plentiful supply 

 of ''little-neck clams", but at present the only processing plant 

 is located at Williston in Carteret County. The distance from 

 the source of supply to the processing plant may make the clams 

 of Albemarle Sound a marginal catcho If this were the case, clams 

 would not contribute much to the economy of the area. Only the 

 success of the processing plant and the demand for these clams can 

 determine the future of the Albemarle Sound clams, 



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