Patrick is right on the money:
Quote:
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"Isn't it funny that at a Public Hearing on the lastest Menhaden Management Plan held in centrally located Plymouth MA at night so recs could attend, only four rec's showed up."
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The meeting in RI on Menhaden had a little better attendance and fortunately we were represented by RISAA and they supported the RFA proposal to END ALL INSHORE fishing for Menhaden for the purpose of rendering.
Right now we have another key issue that impacts us right in our own backyard, or should I say rivers, creeks, and streams.
I am absolutely convinced that the recent increase in herring fishing (specifically mid-water trawlers and pair trawlers) off of Maine and Massachusetts has had a distinct bearing on the decline of the river herring. With few observers on board and little effort spent trying to discern the makeup of the catch --unless the bykill is haddock, then they ask for and get a quota
-- little focus is being put on them as part of the problem. However, they are indeed impacting Atlantic herring and everything that feeds on them.
If you fish for tuna, cod, haddock, stripers, fluke, or for that matter care for dolphin, whales, and turtles...you should make it a point to be at this meeting.
Here's the letter that the RFA sent out to NE membership in May:
May 2005
Dear RFA Member:
There’s an old saying, “find the bait, and you’ll find the fish.” It’s funny how true that can be whether you are fishing for stripers off the beach, targeting giant bluefin offshore, or doing any type of fishing in between. If you fish for cod, striped bass, or bluefin in the Northeast, then you know how important Atlantic herring are as forage and bait for these valuable species.
Unfortunately, we are staring at a herring crisis thanks to the huge commercial mid-water trawlers that have been pounding the herring stocks in the Gulf of Maine and other points off New England over the past several years. These vessels weigh their catch in thousands of metric tons- not pounds or numbers of fish caught. Sign and mail the enclosed postcards today to help bring this fleet under control and conserve the herring stock!
This fleet is taking so many herring from the Gulf of Maine and other New England waters that there’s a lot less forage to attract and hold cod, striped bass and bluefin in Northeast waters. It’s already particularly evident that there’s not enough herring to keep the giant bluefin in New England waters for any extended period and it’s only a matter of time before the lack of herring impacts our other fisheries.
And, as if the mid-water trawl fleet taking tons of herring out of New England’s nearshore waters isn’t bad enough, this fleet is also responsible for a tremendous amount of bycatch of recovering groundfish such as haddock. In fact, the New England Fishery Management Council has recently requested a rule change that would allow the haddock of all sizes being caught by mid-water trawlers to be sold for lobster bait! Furthermore, anglers up and down the East Coast report a noticeable decline in river herring returning to spawn in their home rivers this year.
So what can you do? Sign and mail the enclosed postcards today! The New England Council meets June 21st-23rd in Portland, Maine and they will be voting on preferred alternatives for ‘Amendment 1’ to the Herring Fishery Management Plan. Alternative 7 is the most restrictive on the mid-water trawl fleet and presents the best options to conserve Atlantic herring to make sure an adequate forage base exists to support rebuilding groundfish stocks and to attract and sustain striped bass and tuna.
WE NEED YOU TO ACT TODAY…please take 5 minutes of your time to read, sign, and mail the enclosed postcards. Postcards to the Council must arrive no later than June 17th.
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Jim Donofrio
Executive Director
Now its time to show up at the meeting and tell them you want to see Alternative 7 put into effect.
Mike