Organized recreational anglers have long touted that the commercial fishing industry is primarily responsible for declines in fish population. As expected, the Coastal Conservation Association, CCA, the voice of most organized recreational anglers has come out disputing the claims of the study.
Based on the position of CCA, the study overlooked some major issues. It did not include commercial by-catch. By-catch is the fish that are inadvertently caught while fishing or netting for another species. Most, if not all of it is simply thrown away. By-catch from the shrimping industry is documented as more that the total reported commercial fish catch; yet it was not included in Ms. Coleman’s study.
This study is sure to bring to a boil the heated controversy surrounding Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), and no-fishing zones.
One thing the study pointed out is true. The equipment, boats and electronics that recreational anglers now have at their disposal makes them better able to harvest fish, and numbers of anglers are increasing every.
In an interesting twist, the study compares restrictions on commercial licensing and harvest amounts to recreational licensing. There is no limit on recreational licensing, so even though a species may have a limit of one fish, theoretically, masses of individual recreational anglers can take one fish. There is an undercurrent there that suggests limiting the number of recreational licensees.
It will be interesting to see what comes of this study and how our natural resource managers in each state react. Stay tuned!
