The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) recently presented William “Bill” Goldsborough of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation the Captain David H. Hart Award, its highest annual award.
Mr. Goldsborough is the first person to receive all three Commission awards, having previously received an Annual Award of Excellence for Management & Policy Contributions and the Atlantic Coastal Fish Habitat Partnership (ACFHP) Melissa Laser Fish Habitat Conservation Award.
A senior scientist for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation since 1988, Mr. Goldsborough has provided an independent, conservation-oriented voice to the fisheries discussion.
Mr. Goldsborough joined the Commission in 1995 after having served as a member of the Commission’s Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act Transition Team. From 1995 through 2004 he was the Maryland Governor’s Appointee and again from 2007 until this year.
During his career, Mr. Goldsborough has made significant contributions to the protection and recovery of several key Chesapeake Bay fishery species.
He played a central role in the striped bass recovery, beginning with the implementation of the Maryland moratorium in 1985 and continuing through to the reopening the fishery in 1990, having achieved consensus among diverse stakeholders to move towards a conservation-based approach to striped bass management.
He also led a public blue crab conservation campaign that resulted in a broad commitment to cap effort in the fishery and led to the adoption of bay-wide fishery management plans under the Chesapeake Bay Agreement.
The Commission instituted the Award in 1991 to recognize individuals who have made outstanding efforts to improve Atlantic coast marine fisheries.
The Captain David H. Hart Award is named for one of the Commission’s longest serving members, who dedicated himself to the advancement and protection of marine fishery resources.
source: Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission
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