SC county moves to ban surf, shark fishing on public beaches. Local fishermen alarmed
A proposed Georgetown County ordinance has raised alarm among locals and tourists or the restrictions it seeks to place on beach fishing activities.
On Tuesday, the county council voted unanimously for the second reading of the proposed ordinance, which would prohibit bait and surf fishing on public beaches from 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. from May 1 to Sept. 30. The ordinance would also ban commercial fishing and fishing for sharks or other “dangerous species” on public beaches.
County ordinance currently bans baiting or fishing in ways that could “create an unsafe condition or hazard” for beachgoers in the water. While neighboring Horry County has a ban on shark fishing already, such a ban would be new in Georgetown County.
Despite current regulations, shark fishing has been a notable aspect of both Georgetown and Horry County history. One of the largest tiger sharks ever caught was reeled in at the Cherry Grove pier in North Myrtle Beach in 1964.
The council has plans for a vote on the ordinance at their upcoming July 22 meeting. As that date draws closer, more and more local fishing enthusiasts have taken to online platforms to voice their concerns.
“Just a reminder that Murrells Inlet didn’t become Murrells Inlet because someone wanted a sanitized beach for their pastel beach chair and White Claw,” reads a post that has been made by multiple users on Facebook.
The post describes Murrells Inlet as a “quaint drinking village with a fishing problem,” and goes on to say that banning surf fishing is “sanding down the edges of something real until it’s smooth enough to sell on a billboard,” and “bend(ing) to the comfort of outsiders.”
County official speaks out
A statement shared online from Georgetown County Chairman Clint Elliott says that the ordinance was “never intended to prohibit our residents and visitors from enjoying legal recreational activities,” but was rather in response to resident and visitor concerns about “companies who come to our shores to do ‘Land Based Shark Fishing Tours.’”
Elliott states that upon hearing concerns about these shark fishing companies, he reached out to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources to determine an “avenue to stop this kind of activity,” and was told that it would be “up to the county” to enact a preventative ordinance.
SCDNR and Elliott did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday.
State Sen. Stephen Goldfinch, who resides in Murrells Inlet, has not yet spoken publicly about the ordinance, and did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday.
Ordinance ‘would put an end to my business’
Greg Haskins, owner of the Murrells Inlet-based shore fishing tour business Catching With Greg, worries about the future of his livelihood if the ban is passed as it currently stands.
“If it went through as it is right now, it would put an end to my business,” he said.
If it does, Haskins is prepared to take action.
Haskins said that having bans on surf fishing during certain times of the day and putting certain regulations on fishing could be understandable to him, but banning shark fishing as a public safety concern is based in “irrational fears,” he said, and “sets a dangerous precedent.”
Shark fishing is a large part of Haskins’ business, where customers can request that their tour focus on catching sharks. Even if they don’t, Haskins said it’s rare that a tour doesn’t involve any shark fishing.
“There actually isn’t any basis for the idea that shark fishing is dangerous,” he said. He later added that putting forth a shark fishing ban under the declaration that it is a public safety concern is “defamatory” toward his business.
Right now, Haskins is focused on coming to an “amicable agreement” with county officials, and hopes to see the ordinance’s restrictions and bans amended. If they aren’t however, he is prepared to take legal action.
Haskins said he is already actively pursuing a lawsuit against Horry County’s shark fishing ban, and he would do the same in Georgetown County if need be.
This story was originally published June 26, 2025 at 4:37 PM.
