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Fisheries Management & Legislative Report
by Tom Fote
(from Jersey Coast Anglers Association May 2002 Newsletter)
Fisheries Management & Legislative Report
by Tom Fote
(from Jersey Coast Anglers Association May 2002 Newsletter)
Molly Benjamin
Calls NJ Anglers "Striper Nazis"
Why People Fish - editorial by Tom Fote
Update On Subway Cars
Update on Virginia Striped Bass
Bluefish
ASMFC Meeting - May 20 - 23
I recently read an article by Molly Benjamin from the Cape Cod Times. She twisted the facts that underlie New Jersey's decision to make striped bass a gamefish and I will certainly comment on those issues later. But, first, I need to deal with her "Striper Nazis" comments. I can't believe that the Cape Cod Times, a reputable newspaper, would allow one of its columnists to label New Jersey's recreational angler "Nazis.” Many of us have been called lots of things in the heat of the moment during the years. I could list labels that have been directed to me personally. But I have never been called anything so offensive as Nazi. As one of the people most recognized as working for striped bass gamefish in New Jersey, I take this personally. I take it personally for me and for all my colleagues in JCAA. I also take it personally for my Jewish relatives, friends and the Jewish members of JCAA and the recreational community. I also take it personally for all the other groups targeted by the Nazis during World War II. I take it personally for my father and the other veterans of World War II who served their country proudly to fight what the Nazis stood for. Let me quote directly: "So how come the Striper Nazis convinced the assembled delegates of the great state of New Jersey to tightly allocate this wondrous fish of all the people to such a small, privileged group?" Perhaps I should take it personally for our legislators too. Molly Benjamin is entitled to her opinion. She is even allowed, in an open society, to twist the facts a bit. But I really believe she owes all of us an apology for the Nazi comment. This is truly unacceptable. I hope the Cape Cod Times will have the good sense to repudiate her comment and publicly apologize.
Now to the facts. In her article, Molly Benjamin suggests that New Jersey's current legislation on striped bass gives the stripers to only a privileged few. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, New Jersey has made it possible for all anglers, including those who cannot afford charter boats or boats of their own, to catch and keep a limited number of striped bass. A few years ago I was in Cape Cod for an Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission meeting. I like to check out the docks and piers since that was my primary fishing spots when I was a boy in Brooklyn. As I sat next to the older anglers who were fishing from the dock, I noticed they were all fishing for herring and other small species. I though I would fish for stripers for a while since I could see them breaking. I asked the other anglers why they weren't fishing for stripers and they told me the size limit made it difficult to catch a "keeper.” Since they were looking for fish to eat, they couldn't waste the time to fish for a striper that would not meet the minimum size limit. Those stripers, it appears, are for the commercial anglers who provide fish for those who can afford to eat in the fine restaurants. Again, I didn't notice any fancy, expensive gear, Just retired men and women hoping to supplement their grocery bill with a fish to eat. New Jersey has decided that those people who harvest the fish directly should be able to take some of those fish home to eat. New Jersey decided not to regulate those anglers out of the fishery. If you have the money there are certainly safe, pollution free, farm-raised striped bass available in the restaurants and fish markets in New Jersey. It's a shame that we can't catch the same quality of fish in the ocean.
In closing, I hope Molly Benjamin is not in the running for the Marie Antoinette "Let them eat cake" Award. I hope she will rethink her position, or at least her language. She needs to consider the facts and she needs to consider the inappropriateness of her comments. You can read her whole article at http://www.fishingnj.org/artmbenja.htm.
Editorial by Tom Fote
Reprint of a previous Editorial from JCAA February 2000 Newspaper.
I received a copy of the January 2000 American Sportfishing Newsletter. This newsletter contained interesting information about why anglers fish. The information came from the "Future of Fishing" surveys conducted in 1980, 1995 and 1999. According to ASA the results of these surveys show that in 1999 "more people who fish do so for relaxation (35%), to be with friends and family (33%), and to be close to nature (13%). Catching large trophy fish (3%), catching fresh fish for food (5%), and fishing simply for the sport of it (7%) are no longer considered motivations by most anglers." The entire report is available at the ASA website http://www.asafishing.org.
Some fisheries managers would conclude that recreational anglers now pursue fishing for the social benefits rather than for actually catching fish for their personal consumption. According to the survey, this has changed dramatically. In 1980 almost 30% of anglers fished for food. Now only about 5% fish for food. In 1980 about 10% of anglers fished for a trophy fish. Now only about 3% do. Compare that to fishing for relaxation, which rose from less than 15% in 1980 to 35% in 1999.
I find this information very interesting. I would like to share my analysis of these statistics. It would be tempting to assume that anglers no longer care about catching a trophy fish or bringing home fish to eat and are simply fishing for relaxation. My experience suggests that different reasons underlie these responses, especially for saltwater anglers.
From 1980 to the present day anglers have become more aware of the contaminants in fresh water and saltwater fish. In any state's fishing digest you will find many advisories for limiting the consumption of various species. Most of these advisories, whether for salmon in the Great Lakes or striped bass in the Hudson River, suggest strict guidelines on the consumption of these species. The guidelines are even stricter for children or women of childbearing age. In the 1970's and early 80's, I thought nothing of filleting an entire cooler of 15-pound or larger bluefish for my family and friends. After all the PCB advisories on large bluefish in the 80's, I no longer keep or consume this quantity of large bluefish nor am I willing to be responsible for feeding family and friends. I have taken the same action regarding steaks from large striped bass. This is true of all the fish with advisories. We certainly don't eat as much as we did twenty years ago and this leaves me with less motivation to catch fish with advisories for personal consumption.
Many of the fish that I would now take home for food are the ones with strict bag limits and large size limits. In addition, some of these species are harder to catch due to the depletion of the stocks from commercial overharvesting. In the 70's and 80's I could come home with a cooler full of summer flounder for family and friends, filling our freezers for the winter. With the collapse of the stocks by the commercial fishermen during the late 80's and the implementation and subsequent reduction of the bag limit, I am lucky to come home with one legal summer flounder for tonight's dinner.
Now consider the anglers who did enjoy fishing for a trophy fish. Those fish are gone, swept up in nets and hooks of the commercial fishermen. This is true of mako shark, striped bass, large bluefish, large weakfish, true giant blue tuna and many other species. The same problems exist along the south Atlantic and the Gulf. The only places trophy size fish like snook, tarpon and redfish are seeing resurgence are places where they were made a game fish.
This survey does not address the issue of decreased recreational participation. We all know that fewer people are fishing, and I believe we are managing recreational anglers off the beach and off the boat. When I fished with my father in the 50's, there were more than 60 party boats and hundreds of charter boats in Brooklyn. The Sheepshead Bay fleet had more than 50 party boats and 100 charter boats. On any given day you would find people fishing; in the winter for whiting, ling, blackfish and cod, in the spring for weakfish, winter flounder, blackfish, sea bass, striped bass and mako sharks, in the summer for summer flounder, scup, bluefish, and weakfish, in the fall for all the migrating species including bluefin tuna. When I stopped by Sheepshead Bay a few years ago, I found four luxury cruise boats for dinner and gambling and only eight party boats. The charter boat fleet was almost nonexistent. The tackle stores that supplied these boats were no longer the fully stocked wonders of my youth. Only two remained open and their stocks were as depleted as the fish. When was the last time someone asked these clients why they go fishing? They are no longer there to respond to the survey.
In my estimation, this chart says more about fisheries management than it does about why anglers fish. With increased advisories and regulations, anglers have had no choice but to find other reasons to go fishing. We have to content ourselves with the social benefits, positive though those may be, when there simply are no fish to catch. Ask any angler more questions, find our why he or she learned to love fishing in the first place and I would bet that you would get different information than what is included in this survey. If there were more fish to catch for food or trophy, you would probably find more anglers on the beach or in the boats to respond to the survey. If we changed the population responding to the survey, the results could be very different. Fisheries managers should be careful about the assumptions they make based on this survey.
By the time you read this newspaper, I will have attended a public hearing in Somers Point on the use of subway cars for artificial reefs. JCAA is grateful to Assemblymen Bob Smith, Doug Fisher and Jeff Van Drew for their support by scheduling the public hearing on the subway cars held on April 23rd. If you are on my email list, you were notified so you could attend this meeting. In addition, we have been in contact with the Governor's Office through Bradley Campbell, Commissioner of DEP. There are still 650 cars available if we make a decision soon. I also learned that future decommissioned cars might not be available. Given that the newer subway cars do not contain asbestos, a material that has no negative consequences in the ocean, the NY MTA may be able to meet clean standards for disposal on land with the next batch of cars. Cleaning cars to the level necessary for the ocean is expensive and the MTA will not want to incur this level of expense if they have a cheaper alternative available for future cars. So it may be now or never.
We should have a report on the hearing and more information available at the next JCAA meeting.
It seems that Virginia did nothing to correct the illegal fishery that is taking place in the ocean off the Virginia coast. I briefly covered this issue in the last newspaper but I want to update you on the consequences of Virginia's actions.
When the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission opened the striped bass fishery, it differentiated between the Chesapeake Bay and the coast. It allowed a smaller fish to be harvested in the Chesapeake Bay with the understanding that both commercial and recreational harvest would be on premigratory fish. It was expected that the coastal harvest would be on migratory fish. That is the reason the fishery was opened with two different size limits. This fact seems to be overlooked by everyone. Since the opening of the fishery, quotas in Chesapeake Bay have been based on what we know about premigratory fish. Tables, models and all decisions have used that information as a basis for setting the quota in the bay.
As time passed, ASMFC also began allowing for a harvest of those coastal migratory fish that spent some time in Chesapeake Bay. That is why there are special seasons for recreational harvest. The Chesapeake Bay quotas are based on fish caught in Chesapeake Bay on Chesapeake Bay stocks. Virginia and Maryland both also have a coastal quota based on the ocean fishery. This fishery is on combined stocks from Chesapeake Bay, Hudson River and Delaware River.
When Virginia started harvesting their Chesapeake Bay quota in the ocean, they corrupted the entire model used to establish the Chesapeake Bay quota. Some of the mortality justification in the models comes from tagging studies. Fish are tagged and released and their recaptures rates help determine the size of the stock and the mortality rate. When Virginia began harvesting their bay quota in the ocean they severely changed the validity of the data collected. This faulty data gave us incorrect information on the status of the stocks in the Chesapeake Bay, Hudson River and Delaware River. This has been going on since 1997. Virginia is using this loophole to their advantage. First, it allows for a greater harvest in the bay because the mortality figures are corrupted. Second, they are harvesting 20 - 30 pound fish before they enter Chesapeake Bay, Hudson River or Delaware River to spawn. Remember, this fishery takes place beginning in January when the big cowfish are wintering over off North Carolina. This is having a very negative on all the stocks. If you wonder where the big fish have gone, look south to Virginia. They are catching their share and more. Estimates on the ocean harvest are probably 180,000 big fish in the last three years.
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and the member states are derelict in their duty. They did not close this loophole as soon as it was reported but allowed it to go on indefinitely. Hopefully, it will be addressed at the May meeting. It will take a long time, however, to repair the loss of credibility for the models that we are currently using. Virginia should be ashamed. They knew what was happening and did nothing.
The management of bluefish has not been a hot topic for the last few years. Regulations have not changed for the recreational sector. However, we have been transferring more and more of the recreational quota to the commercial fishery. Much of this transfer is on smaller fish off North Carolina. JCAA will continue to bring this issue to the table. We will reach out to all the major recreational organizations, asking for their support in reevaluating this year's transfer to the commercial quota. These decisions are usually made at the August Council meetings. If you belong to a national group, please bring this issue to their attention and ask for their support of JCAA's position.
Below is the preliminary agenda for the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Meeting, May 20 - 23, 2002. The meeting is at the Watergate Swissotel, 2650 Virginia Avenue, NW Washington, DC (202) 965-2300. As I discussed last month, this hotel is very expensive. Rooms without tax are $150 per day and it costs an additional $24 each day. If you didn't respond immediately to the notice, the cheap rooms were gone and you were charged $285 per room.
There will be important discussions on weakfish, striped bass and other species. You will get feedback on this meeting in the June newspaper. I would also call the ASMFC at 202-289-6400 or check the webpage to make sure the agenda has not changed.
Preliminary Agenda*
*Dates and times are subject to change up to the times meetings are held.
Monday, May 20, 2002
10:00 AM –4 PM Management and Science Committee/Habitat
11:00 AM - 4:00 PM American Lobster Management Board
1:00 PM - 5:00 PM Weakfish Advisory Panel
Review public comment on Amendment 4 Public Information Document
4:00 PM - 6:00 PM Asian Oyster Workshop
Tuesday, May 21, 2002
8:00 AM - 9:30 AM Horseshoe Crab Management Board
8:30 AM - 12:30 PM Spiny Dogfish Advisory Panel
8:30 AM - 1:00 PM Management and Science Committee (continued)
9:30 AM - 1:00 PM Weakfish Management Board
1:00 PM - 5:00 PM Law Enforcement Committee
2:00 PM - 6:00 PM Spiny Dogfish and Coastal Shark Management Board
Wednesday, May 22, 2002
7:30 AM -10:00 AM South Atlantic State-Federal Fisheries Management
8:00 AM – Noon Law Enforcement Committee (continued)
8:00 AM – Noon Joint Meeting: NEAMAP Management Board and NEAMAP
Operations Committee
10:00 AM – Noon Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program Coordinating Council
1:00 PM ? 4:00 PM ISFMP Policy Board
1:00 PM - 5:00 PM Atlantic Striped Bass Advisory Panel
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM Advisory Committee
4:00 PM ? 5:30 PM Executive Committee
5:30 PM - 6:00 PM Full Commission
Thursday, May 23, 2002
8:00 AM – Noon Committee on Economic and Social Sciences
8:00 AM - 4:00 PM Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board