Do you need a reason to go fishing?

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1. Mark Noble says:

   May 25, 2026 at 4:54 AM

   As a lifelong Georgia fisherman, charter captain, and founder of the Genesis 1:26 Project / Game Fish Status, I first want to thank Southern Fishing News for promoting Georgia’s incredible black bass fishery and encouraging people to get outdoors and experience what recreational fishing is truly about.

   What many fishermen today may not fully realize is that the very black bass species being celebrated through the Georgia Bass Slam were protected historically through conservation measures like the Black Bass Act and broader game fish protections that helped preserve recreational fishing opportunities for future generations. Freshwater fishermen in Georgia today are fortunate because game fish principles ultimately protected not only black bass, but also crappie, bream, and many other freshwater recreational species that now form the backbone of outdoor recreation across our state.

   Unfortunately, Georgia’s saltwater fishery followed a very different path.

   Today, red drum is currently Georgia’s only true saltwater game fish species, and now even red drum itself has recently been listed as overfished and experiencing overfishing in Georgia waters. Meanwhile, many of the foundational saltwater species surrounding red drum — croaker, spot, whiting, weakfish, flounder, black drum, and others — have faced deregulation, de minimis classifications, or reduced protections over time despite their importance to the coastal ecosystem and long-term recreational fishing opportunity.

   Under O.C.G.A. § 27-1-3, Georgia’s fish and wildlife belong to the people of Georgia under the public trust. That includes our saltwater fisheries from the shoreline to three miles offshore in Georgia state waters. These resources are part of Georgia’s natural inheritance, just as much as the black bass and freshwater fisheries now being celebrated through this excellent program.

   Most recently, many recreational fishermen across the South Atlantic were stunned when President Trump’s administration attempted to expand recreational red snapper opportunity for the public, only for that effort to be challenged in federal court and overturned after commercial-sector legal action. Families who had prepared to fish were effectively told to stand down.

   Grandfathers, fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, and families who simply wanted the opportunity to experience one of America’s great saltwater fish were turned around at the dock. In the process, many recreational fishermen were left with the growing feeling that the public itself is slowly losing access to the very fish that belong to the people under the public trust.

   That moment deeply resonated with many of us here in Georgia because it reflects the larger concern surrounding the future of recreational saltwater fishing itself.

   Many freshwater fishermen may one day bring their families to Georgia’s coast expecting the same recreational opportunities they enjoy in freshwater today. Our hope is that when they arrive, those opportunities still exist.

   That is why the Genesis 1:26 Project was created — to educate the public about Game Fish Status, conservation history, public-trust stewardship, and the importance of protecting our saltwater fisheries before further decline occurs. I have personally met with members of the Georgia Legislature, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and Coastal Resources Division officials following the recent Red Drum Town Hall discussions because these concerns are real and increasingly important to the future of Georgia’s coast.

   We cannot continue passing ecosystem decline, deregulation, diminishing public access, and disappearing recreational opportunity on to future generations as the accepted future of our saltwater fishery.

   I am also the author of The Saltwater Fisherman’s New Testament, published earlier this year, which explores the conservation history behind Game Fish Status, the Black Bass Act, public-trust stewardship, and the future sustainability of America’s saltwater fisheries.

   We respectfully ask freshwater fishermen and outdoor conservationists across Georgia to help support the conversation surrounding Game Fish Status for our saltwater fisheries and to lend their voice to the future of conservation in Georgia state waters.

   If you support long-term stewardship, public recreational opportunity, and protecting our fisheries for future generations, please consider joining and following the Genesis 1:26 Project at GoFishUSA.com.

   Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to share this message.

   Protect our saltwater fish.
   Let the wild remain wild.

   — Captain Mark Noble
   Founder — Genesis 1:26 Project / Game Fish Status
   Author — The Saltwater Fisherman’s New Testament
   GoFishUSA.com

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