I am 16 yrs old and live in the town of Ocean City, MD. Fishing means everything to me, my friends, my family, and the community. I can not imagine living with out fishing.

When I was 10 years old, my buddies and I started cast netting baitfish and selling them to some local marinas. Now we all have jobs as mates in the summer. I currently work on an inshore fishing boat and love every mminute of it. I am hoping to be able to save enough money and pay for college.

Fishing has done many great things for me. Fishing keeps me out of drugs and alcohol that many teens my age are suffering from. Fishing also allows me to spend quality time with my friends and family. Some of my best memories are catching rockfish with my dad when I was only five years old, shark fishing with friends a few miles off the beach, and laughing at some the great stories that the old charter captains tell at the dock.

I can not imagine Ocean City without fishing. There would not be much history about this old beach town if it was not for fishing. Ocean City revolves around fishing. Everything from tackle shops, marinas, resteraunts, and hotels depend on the fishing industry. Many of the old resteraunts were the fishermen would hang out when they returned from a trip would close if there was no fishing. Tourists would not be able to see the ginarmous shark on the boardwalk if there was no fishing. Ocean City would be nothing without fishing.

The White Marlin Open, held in August each year, is the world's biggest billfish tournament. Many boats enter hoping to catch the biggest white marlin. The payout for the biggest fish is usually over one million dollars. Beside the fishermen fishing in the tournament, tourists and locals watch all the boats leaving in the morning and the weigh-ins in the late afternoon. This brings in lots of money to the nearby hotels, resteraunts, and bars. Some business owners make more money in that week than they do all year. Without fishing, no one would be in town for this big tournament, and many business owners would suffer.

I can not imagine living with out having the ability to fish. Captains, mates, fish cleaners, tackle shop employees, business owners, and commercial fishermen would all lose their jobs and suffer badly. The whole town of Ocean City would have no business.

No fishing is not an option for me, or the poeple of Ocean City, MD.