Hi to all Ecofishers members and supporters.
Last Wednesday night 3rd July Ecofishers in conjunction with Coffs Harbour Deep Sea Fishing Club hosted a meeting to protest against the proposed bag and size limit review currently being undertaken by DPI Fisheries.
Around four hundred people attended the meeting many of them travelling hundreds of kilometres. This sort of attendance by fishos on a cold winter’s night is a solid indication of the depth of feeling against this paper.
The overwhelming mood of the meeting was that this document is a disgrace, should be shredded and thrown in the bin. The reality is we all know that is not going to happen and the only way to let the Minister know these proposals are totally unacceptable is for all of us to make our submissions.
If we as recreational fishers want changes to fishing rules the onus is on us to provide evidence that change is necessary and there should be no difference just because some bureaucrat has made these proposals. We will be happy to accept reductions in bag limits if there is evidence or research showing the necessity for those changes. There is not one shred of evidence in this regard in these proposals.
>>>>>ONE VERY INTERESTING QUESTION POSED AT THE MEETING<<<<<
“Are these proposals for bag limits or possession limits?????????”
ANSWER…. These are possession limits……….
Therefore the argument about who needs 20 flathead a day is irrelevant. If you catch 20 flathead today and put them in the freezer……. You are not allowed to catch even one more tomorrow in fact you cannot legally catch another flathead until you eat one of those in the freezer. This is an extract from a DPI factsheet
Possession limit A possession limit is the maximum number of fish that a person is allowed to have in their possession at any time. Possession limits provide a useful tool to discourage illegal sales of fish by constraining recreational fishers from accumulation commercial quantities of fish. For all saltwater species, the daily bag limit is the possession limit and it applies to all areas of the state. At the moment the majority of members feel this discussion paper as it stands is unacceptable and as a form of protest every question should be answered “STRONGLY OPPOSED”.
Please note, a submission from an organisation of a thousand members only counts as one, so fishing club executives please encourage your members to put in their own submissions or even help them do it.
Ecofishers representatives are assisting fishing clubs on the Mid North Coast with their submissions and I ask Ecofishers Directors in other areas to help their local members in the same way.
A reminder you can do your submission online at http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fisheries/recreational/info/review
Or print out the copy and post it.
Regards Chris Wallis Chairman, Ecofishers
PS Don’t forget annual subscriptions are now due.