• Notice of Regulation Public Hearing •

Bob & Mag · 04-30-2008, 01:55 PM

Notice of Regulation Public Hearing

The DEP Marine Fisheries division is holding a public hearing to take public comment on proposed amendments to regulations described below.
The proposed amendments pertain to:

Commercial trawl and fish pot fisheries and commercial fisheries for lobster, tautog and black sea bass;
recreational fisheries for scup, tautog, summer flounder and bluefish;
all fisheries for sharks as well as any fisheries conducted under the Research Set-Aside program of the National Marine Fisheries Service.

Written comments will be accepted through June 2, 2008. Based on the public comment received, the proposals may be revised. The public hearing will be held at:

7:00 pm, Monday May 19, 2008
Clinton Town Hall, Green Room
54 East Main St. (Route 1)
Clinton, CT 06413

13 regulations proposed to be ammended...

Specifically, the regulations proposed to be amended:

modify the definition of a fly net and allow a small-mesh trawl fishery for butterfish and squid during the fall;
exempt eel pots from certain fish pot requirements, establish a trap limit for fish pots, a trap tagging requirement for fish pots and a prohibition on setting or tending the fish pots of another fisherman;
adjust the definition of a v-notch and prohibit the possession of lobsters taken from Lobster Management Area (LMA) 6 (Long Island Sound) that are greater than 5 1/4 inches carapace length;
generalize the language regarding the transfer of LMA 2 lobster trap allocations to include any LMA for which the American Lobster Fisheries Management Plan of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission authorizes such transfers;
prohibit the take, possession and sale of certain shark species in Connecticut;
change the recreational minimum length (for party/charter vessels), creel limit and season for scup;
change the recreational minimum length, creel limit and season for summer flounder;
change the recreational creel limit and season for tautog;
increase the possession limit for bluefish
change the commercial season for tautog and the possession limit for tautog taken ty trawl and wliminate the male tautog exemption during the closed season for the pound net fishery;
increase the commercial possession limit for black sea bass in the commercial hook, pound net, scallop dredge, gill net and lobster pot fisheries;
establish rules for notifying the department of fishing trips and landings conducted under the Research Set-Aside (RSA) program of the National Marine Fisheries Service and clarify that the RSA program is a federal waters program and that the RSA exemptions do not apply to fishing condudted in Connecticut waters;
make various technical corrections and clarifications to the afore-mentioned regulations.

For further information, or copies of the proposed regulations can be obtained by writing the

DEP Marine Fisheries Division
PO Box 719
Old Lyme, CT 06371

or by calling

860.434.6043 between the hours of 8:30 am and 4:30 pm,
Monday thru Friday

or by emailing

dep.marine.fisheries@ct.gov

Scup · 04-30-2008, 03:52 PM

Bob,

Would be very much interested in the proposed amendments. My mind is starting to become a blur with so many changes happening so fast that I believe we have just too many officials with their fingers on the triggers of promoting changes. Since most of our fisheries are in trouble anyway, maybe they should start to change their thinking. Perhaps it is time that we should have less of these nickel and dime regulations that have only micro-managed our fisheries to the deplorable state they are currently in. They should take the bull by the horns and promote better, tougher, but fewer, quality laws for everyone's protection, even if they are painful to implement.

Bob & Mag · 04-30-2008, 04:11 PM

ah, but that sounds too much like common sense! I'll edit the first post to add the other info.

Darkman · 05-29-2008, 09:17 AM

I've been away on vacation since 5-18-2008 what came out of the Hearing on May 19 for Scup, and Togs

Bob & Mag · 05-29-2008, 01:18 PM

Not sure. I wasn't able to go. Maybe Scup or one of the others made it.

Scup · 05-29-2008, 10:31 PM

I did not go! As many form members mentioned, it is likely they have already made up their minds as to the course of action they are going to take. I know I will be allowed 50 pounds of scup per day until some quota is reached (which is unlikely since the draggers are not going to leave port with the greatly reduced limits of catchable fish and the price of fuel going out of sight). If they limit the # of pots I fish, big deal! I am only allowed 50 pounds of scup if I fish 5 pots or 100 pots. The only time I would even think of fishing more than five pots would be if they upped the scup limit which is not about to happen. Once again, they are micro-managing our fisheries into oblivion, with semi-useless laws and regulations. One would think these people have nothing do but sit around thinking about laws that they could pass. I expect they will implement some stupid law that will require me to buy a dozen tags for my pots at five bucks for the tags. I know of no one who fishes a large number of scup pots because of the 50 pound limit. Any decent scup fisherman should average at least one scup per minute using rod and reel. This amounts to better than 30 pounds per hour. Therefore, in about 1.5 hours one would have limited out with just a rod and reel. Toss in five pots to boot, and one should not have to spend more than one hour total to limit out. Makes no sense to put out much more than 6 pots and most pin commerical guys have given up using pots for scup altogether because they not worth the effort. The Stonington fisheries is on the verge total collapse. Many commerical guys like myself have reached the point where we just do not give a dam any more what they do, we are finished and we know it! It does amaze me though that the CT DEP is batting zero. They just about destroyed commerical fishing in our state, have recreational anglers screaming for relief with reduced creel limits and increased size limits, and still most of our fish stocks have gone to hell. Somewhere in all of this mess one would think something good has to be happening but it beats the hell of me where it is.

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