PROVIDENCE – The Department of Environmental Management announces the closures of both the commercial striped bass and commercial scup fisheries effective Friday, November 3, 2000.

Based on currently reported catch rates, DEM’s Division of Fish and Wildlife projects that the entire 81,390-pound yearly quota of striped bass allocated to Rhode Island by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) for the year 2000 will be harvested by November 2.

In addition, the National Marine Fisheries Service projects that the 70,356-pound coast-wide quota for scup for the November-December period will also be taken by Thursday, November 2. Therefore, the federal scup fishery will close effective November 3, and the ASMFC is requiring all states to close their commercial scup fisheries concurrently.