{"id":9733,"date":"2018-05-28T16:35:55","date_gmt":"2018-05-28T20:35:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/coastwatch\/?page_id=9733"},"modified":"2024-08-15T14:01:57","modified_gmt":"2024-08-15T18:01:57","slug":"charting-the-course","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/coastwatch\/charting-the-course\/","title":{"rendered":"Charting the Course"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n
Photos by Daniel Pullen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Susan West is a journalist and co-investigator of the Next Generation Coastal Communities project. Daniel Pullen\u2019s photos come from his N.C. Independent Waterman Project<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Young people who hitched their future to the North Carolina commercial fishing industry in the 1970s and 1980s followed a clear path. After learning the trade under the tutelage of an experienced captain, they struck out on their own with a modest boat and a small investment in fishing gear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These new captains were confident about their future, buoyed by the 1976 passage of the Magnuson-Stevens Act \u2014 the primary law governing marine fisheries management in U.S. federal waters \u2014 and national interest in expanding the country\u2019s fishing economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many fishermen of that generation continue to work in the industry. But these days, fewer young people are setting their sights on a fishing career. Those familiar with the situation describe it as the \u201cgraying of the fleet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n