The following is a letter created by the NY Coalition for Recreational Fishing to NY officials involved in deciding NY striped bass regulations. The letter makes an excellent case for adopting 1@28 for all modes of the rec sector. The contact information on who to send the letters to is at the end of the letter. Please feel free to modify the letter as you see fit. January xx, 2015 Dear, The Coalition for Recreational Fishing is concerned about the recent Marine Resources Advisory Council (MRAC) recommendation for future striped bass management. The MRAC recommendation calls for 2 fish per person per day for all users between 28 and 34 inches, and a second fish somewhere over 36” (size to be determined by DEC to meet the harvest reduction). The recommendation includes a request that DEC officials calculate the size of the second larger fish, in inches, needed in order to achieve a harvest savings of 28%. Thus, a NO HARVEST SLOT would be created. As an example, if DEC determines that a second fish over 38 inches will achieve a 28% harvest reduction, a no harvest slot between 34 and 38 inches would be created. The Coalition wants to point out that a no harvest slot would create several new management and enforcement problems. First, private anglers are likely to be confused by this slot. Private anglers in New York have never fished with a “no harvest slot,” and it may lead to errors, overharvesting, and “innocent” errors. Second, since spear fishermen are allowed to harvest striped bass, we wonder how a spear harvester under water with limited visibility and with a needed to make a quick decision to shoot or not, can be expected to accurately harvest striped bass. Third, a narrow “no harvest” slot will require more careful measuring that will likely mean that fish in that slot will be kept out of the water for a longer period of time. This will effectively make live releasing Stripers more difficult and will likely increase post release mortality. Enforcement will get a lot more complicated and awkward. It is important to note that if this recommendation is implemented greater resources from DEC will be required in order to properly educate anglers and also to enforce the regulation. We point out that the legislature and governor then has a responsibility to make these resources available should the recommendation be approved. Our recommendation, however, is much simpler to understand and enforce. We continue to advocate a bag limit of one fish per person per day over 28” for both private and for-hire fishermen as a means of increasing the odds that the new management effort will be easy to understand and enforce, and will achieve a significant reduction in the striped bass harvest. Yours truly, Add your info New York Coalition for Recreational Fishing James J. Gilmore, Jr. Director NY State Dept. of Environmental Conservation Bureau of Marine Resources 205 N Belle Mead Road, Suite 1 East Setauket, New York 11733‐3400 E‐Mail: [email protected] Tel: 1 631 444 0430 The Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo Governor of New York State NYS State Capitol Building Albany, NY 12224 Joseph Martens, Commissioner New York State Department of Environmental Conservation 625 Broadway Albany, NY 12233-0001
Posted on: Sat, 24 Jan 2015 22:34:50 +0000
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