CaptDom

Not angry at all, wisdom tooth issues , maybe a little brusque and shorter than my normal responses .

GP, I misunderstood your post based on where it entered the discussion, sorry. Yes, it feels like winter, the weather sucks....

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CAPT. DOM PETRARCA
COASTAL CHARTERS SPORTFISHING
NEWPORT, RI (401)-862-0358
www.coastalcharterssportfishing.com

 

JayR

Hope the pain subsides for ya.... Need some Vicodins?

I never got my wisdom teeth, they never bothered me either.
Never gained any wisdom for that matter either

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I really don't care what you have to say about me, just as long as you mention my name

CaptDom

I can't do those pain meds, they bind me all up But thanks for the offer.

Jason,

I can't argue with you on your political mistrust, and I do know that you certainly see the same things I do in regards to raping the oceans. I still appreciate the fact that you hold fast for the conservation of our marine wildlife....

I would rather see a co operative study, and a public comment forum allowed along with stakeholders from the commercial sector. It is the only fair way to proceed.

I was never trying to sway from your reasons behind your favoring these bills, just merely trying to get you to see that the lesser of two evils is not a good choice, especially if it compromises other fisheries by setting presedence for the RI Congress to use plenary power in further abuse....

__________________
CAPT. DOM PETRARCA
COASTAL CHARTERS SPORTFISHING
NEWPORT, RI (401)-862-0358
www.coastalcharterssportfishing.com

JayR

Ahhhh.... the old foot in the door huh? Just what I had hoped for and I am truly sorry that you have broached the subject

One could only pray... LOL!

I'm no old man mind you. Just 43, but in those few years I have witnessed boom to bust. Early 70's into the early 80's we fished for stripers, BFT, winter flounder, fluke, cod, mackerel, pollack and a whole bunch of other stuff. We had fun, we were successful and the fish were big. Case in point, cod in excess of 50 pounds were not uncommon coming over the rails of out 16 foot boats 7 miles off the beaches of Cape Cod.

Most of my memories are just that. Not soon to be repeated...

We have demonstrated a lack of control in the commercial harvest of our oceans and it cannot continue. At some point or other, the tide needs to change and we will need smart management of the resources. That in my eyes will necessitate a banning of large scale commercial harvest and the elimination of by-catch. Tough orders to fill. Necessary as the situation keeps getting worse. There are a few exceptions but not enough to make a difference.

A quote from the ASMFC link above:

How sad an affair is it they they are just now coming to this realization?

We need to start looking at the whole picture and we can't wait for anyone to study it and decide it's a good idea. The year is 2007 for crying out loud and I think the ball was dropped. Banning the large scale menhaden harvest in the Bay is a start. It looks to be a good idea, try it, examine the results and then make a sound decision. There's but a small price to pay. Waiting can very likely cost us more than we care to deal with.

I think the biggest fear over this proposed ban is that it will make such a difference in the bay that it will be impossible to ignore its' success in future management decisions. Show just once what a disaster these kinds of fishing practices are and the game is over.

I think that is the biggest issue at hand. Once the hand has been shown, there's no more dealing...

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I really don't care what you have to say about me, just as long as you mention my name

JayR

Found this on the AP this morning:

Fight over small fish causes big uproar in Rhode Island

April 29, 2007
By RAY HENRY The Associated Press
PROVIDENCE, R.I. ? The menhaden is a lowly fish. An ignoble member of the herring family, it sits near the bottom of the food chain and is prized more as fertilizer and oil than for the bony meat on its foot-long body.

But a proposal in Rhode Island's General Assembly to ban netting the fish in Narragansett Bay is pitting recreational fishermen who believe a ban will help rebuild stocks of striped bass against lobstermen who use menhaden to bait their traps.

At least seven states on the Atlantic coast have already taken similar steps, including New Hampshire and Connecticut in New England.

The bill being considered by lawmakers would ban boats from using purse seines, or giant nets, to scoop up thousands of menhaden at a time for sale as bait. Recreational fishermen accuse these commercial boats of destroying a food source that sustains life in Narragansett Bay, and say menhaden improve the water quality by eating the plankton that cause toxic algae blooms.

Commercial fishermen say a ban dressed up as conservationism is really just a conflict over who gets to use Narragansett Bay, the watery center of Rhode Island.

"They don't want us in the bay fishing, they don't want us sharing the fish," said Gerald Souza, owner of Ark Bait in Fall River, Mass., the only company now licensed to net menhaden in Rhode Island waters.

The menhaden industry was worth $62 million nationwide in 2005, according to the last statistics available from the National Marine Fisheries Service.

Menhaden live from Nova Scotia to Florida. After spawning in shelf waters, schools of young Atlantic menhaden drift into coastal estuaries like Narragansett Bay and grow. They leave by winter, generally migrating along the coastline.

Besides striped bass, bluefish, sea trout and tuna snack on menhaden from the sea while herons and eagles pluck them from the air.

Scientists say getting a good menhaden count is difficult because the fish migrate so rapidly. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, which regulates menhaden, reports that stocks are generally healthy, but it's preparing a study to detect local problem areas.

Key environmental officials in Rhode Island see no crisis.

"We're quite confident there are no major warning bells," said Robert Ballou, chief of staff of the Department of Environmental Management.

Still, one DEM analysis suggests that adult striped bass are leaner than before, which could mean they can't find enough menhaden to eat. That troubles Stephen Medeiros, president of the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association.

Rhode Island doesn't regulate how many menhaden can be caught for bait, and Medeiros' group has pushed regulators to change those rules over two decades without success.

"There's always a stall," he said. "There's never a solution."

Tired of waiting, Medeiros and his supporters are taking their case directly to lawmakers and applying pressure. In just six days, they gathered more than 11,000 signatures on a petition supporting the ban.

Lobstermen like Dennis Ingram, who fishes out of Newport, call that tactic an unfair shortcut. He says fishing policy should be set by dedicated regulatory bodies that include fishermen and scientists, not at the Statehouse.

"In my mind, it's a fish grab more than anything," he said. "It's a user conflict."

Ingram said he worries lobstermen will get pinched in the wallet if the bill passes. He uses five types of fish as bait. All except menhaden are considered overfished and subject to catch limits, which cut down on supply and can drive up prices.

In 2002, Ingram spent $14,000 on bait, he said. Four years later, that amount more than doubled to $30,000.

"That all comes from my profit," he said. "If they get away with this, we'll be an endangered species."

Worried about their bottom line, the lobstermen have pressured their own allies in the General Assembly.

Both sides say they're willing to compromise rather than have the General Assembly impose a solution that neither side will like.

Medeiros, of the anglers association, said he wants a cap on menhaden fishing, or at least restrictions that guarantee more menhaden will survive. Souza says his bait company is willing to consider ceding some of the bay to recreational fishermen, as it has done in the past.

The environmental group Save the Bay is helping to broker a possible compromise. John Torgan of the group said he was hopeful they could come up with a solution before House and Senate committees take action on the menhaden bills.

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I really don't care what you have to say about me, just as long as you mention my name

JayR

This discussion dead or what????

__________________
I really don't care what you have to say about me, just as long as you mention my name

CaptDom

Science aside, it seems that both sides are looking to take it back from congress and compromise instead....

I still wish someone would get their act together, and get a 2-3 year study in narry bay directly monitoring the menhaden population, for an accurate asessment on our particular area of the migration.

The numbers in the bay right now says that this years run is even bigger and better than last years. The 2 traps out front have been absolutely LOADED with them, and Greenwich Bay is so choked with them you could walk across to Rocky Point from Goddard on em

I wonder if the reduction boats getting kicked out of NJ has anything to do with it ......

__________________
CAPT. DOM PETRARCA
COASTAL CHARTERS SPORTFISHING
NEWPORT, RI (401)-862-0358
www.coastalcharterssportfishing.com

GP-TJ

They're in that thick right now. I gotta get that boat ready to go in the water. I can't believe I haven't done anything to it yet. I've had some other projects going on. I did alright snagging last year. I always found them in Wickford and off Greene River. I caught some skip jack blues too for bait. I gotta get some squids too...I hope this is a sign of good things to come this year. A study would be nice. Too bad there wasn't some good study from before NJ shut down the reduction boats. That would have been interesting.

GP

JayR

That many in the Bay already huh? Nice to hear....
I should stock up and fill the freezer for later this summer.
I say that every year but never get around to it.... Always something more pressing to get to.

Glad to hear they are working on it.

__________________
I really don't care what you have to say about me, just as long as you mention my name

JayR

Any new info on this? Haven't seen anything in the paper lately.

__________________
I really don't care what you have to say about me, just as long as you mention my name