Bass size limits, sold down the river again....

[Greenheart]

I see our seedy little Government & their useless fisheries minister Jonathan Shaw has once again ignored scientific & public opinion & bowed to the might of the commercial lobby regarding Bass size limits. One can only assume that someone somewhere got a nice little backhander, as there's no other logical reason for this decision. And they still seem to think we will be prepared to happily cough up more money for a sea fishing rod licence tax to further line their pockets. Just what kind of gullible fools do they take us for?

[Gremlin]

The problem is that there is actually a very healthy population of bass in the 30 - 38cm range. Dr Pawson, CEFAS, estimates the biggest biomass of bass in the Solent ever (since CEFAS records).

The reasons are two-fold .... 15 years or so of Nursery Areas where bass have been protected for two or three years of growth. This accompanied by over-wintering and ambient conditions because of global warming. Our Solent temperatures now only dip under 10C for a couple of months a year.

These bass have never spawned and many never will spawn because of the tonnages trawled, gill-netted, discarded and sold at market.

A bass needs to be 40 - 45cm; 5-8years (females) to spawn and male fish mature at 31 - 35cm; 4-7 years (after Pawson).

Now every conservation-minded organisation points out that no population can succeed if a large proportion of pre-spawners are harvested.

Unfortunately, the EU is obsessed with cutting discards of undersize fishes to the extent they are prepared to ignore increasing size limits to conserve stocks. Defra has tied its own hands in deference to CFP (Common Fisheries Policy) and cannot see further than the end of its nose and all the commercials are rubbing their hands with glee at the prospect of 7 years of plenty before the inevitable famine!

[barbelblanker]

Still think that unsustainable fishing should be stopped now. It's not like the destruction of an industry hasn't been done before by this countys government (granted not this one). Why aren't they taxing the hell out of drag netters and not giving tax breaks to line caught and dived shell fish producers? The truth is that the very people who are vocally against the measures this government allows to pass (though lack of balls) are the same people that may find themselves being lined up for banning in the future. It cannot be beyond the wit of man to develop nets that allow undersized fish to pass relatively unharmed. Oh there are? Hmm!

[Gremlin]

You read the other forums where some commercials post and you quickly see that 'sustainable' is not in their dictionary.

Here's an example from one:

That word "Sustainable". We all hear it every day, we all think we know what it means, but i must be an idiot because i really don't have a clue what it means

Regarding mesh which allows undersized fish through -
that's fine if trawling discriminated (the odd sole in a cod fishery fetches a tasty price, though); but get close to the right size in say a predominantly cod fishery and you then get diamond mesh which pulls tight so NOTHING can escape -

http://www.defra.gov.uk/fish/sea/con...vruleseng3.pdf

Cod end requirements allow some battered fish to escape!!!

Catches and stock levels are one thing, what about the destruction of millions of hectares of sea bed?????

http://www.eurocbc.org/page90.html

[meolsman]

I say pull out of the E.U.,would not have half the problems,yet other european countries can get away with murder we have to toe the line,half these politicos could not hold down a proper job,it makes me want to cry,to see what is happening.

[DUNWORKING]

it is not just a queston of net size, cutting quotas and such. when you take into account that the french and spanish an so no will eat any thing put any size fish in a pot for soup the stocks have no chance. we need to stop the bloody lot of them fishing and do the same as iceland and norway and sink the bloodt lot. at least then we will give the fish some chance.

[Gremlin]

Yep, a good war did marvels for the fish stocks after '45; trouble is, it made inroads into the stocks of young men between the ages of 17 and 25 too!
(No need to misinterpret that!).

[DUNWORKING]

to true mate,just do the same as iceland,and dump the eu fishing policey.

[Gremlin]

Have you any idea what that would mean if Defra truly had to run UK Fisheries??

Think of Simon Cowell running the Almshouse Association .....

[DUNWORKING]

no mate i do not,but all the talking in the world will not help if the will to do some thing is missing.NAMELY THE POLITICAL WILL TO HELP ENGLISH INTERESTS.