Return of the Drift nets

[Hoppy]

From The Irish Examiner

11. Fish body move on salmon

THE head of one of the country's biggest fishery districts has hinted there may be a way back into commercial salmon fishing for drift netters on the southwest coast.

Under new salmon conservation measures, no licences for drift netting will be available in 2007 in Cork and Kerry, where traditionally around 150 licenses have been issued.

However, Aidan Barry, chief executive of the South Western Regional Fisheries board, which covers Kerry and much of Cork, told the board's monthly meeting in Macroom on Tuesday night that those who do not take the hardship fund on offer from the Government will be entitled to apply for whatever commercial licenses are going and may emerge in the future.

These would include draft net fishing licenses which became available on the estuaries. Drift netting would be ruled out, Mr Barry said.

"So there is a prospect where those who choose not to take the hardship fund could find a way back where there's a surplus, and in the southwest there will be a surplus. I see no intention to discriminate against drift net fishermen."

Anne Lucey

© Irish Independent

[Teifi Terrorist]

Great news a loop-hole.

TT.

[wnion]

Upsurge of Gill net fishing on Irish coastal waters

Written By: Doug Lock
On Date: 4/6/2007

It has come to my attention that there will be a significant increase in coastal GILL NETTING this summer. One rod fishery has alleged that they were told not to bemoan net marked fish this season as these grilse would have escaped form “Pollack Gill Nets” So do we have a situation whereby Drift netting has ended yet …….Gill netting will now take its place and I guess salmon will just be a bye catch!
I looked on the web to see a definition of a Gill net…….here is what I found!
www.botany.uwc.ac.za/Envfacts/facts/gill_nets.htm
Conservationists, local fishermen, and South Africa's Department of Environment Affairs have joined in support against gill or drift nets, mainly used by Asian fishing vessels, which kill thousands, possibly millions, of sea creatures each year, including dolphins, whales, seals, seabirds and turtles. These nets are also believed to kill huge numbers of fish which can mean the destruction of fishing industries and the loss of jobs.

Called drift nets because fishing boats leave them to drift in the ocean to catch more fish more easily, they are also known as gill nets because fish are caught and trapped by their gills. Local fishermen are particularly upset because the nets often catch younger fish such as tuna which live nearer the surface where the nets are used.

end.

[silverinvicta]

Gill nets usually multi strand mono.....a fish in them seldom escapes, terrific by products when in use...I have seen first hand the carnage of gill netting...heaps of dogfish and other non saleable fish left in heaps on North wales beaches.These fish were dumped by an illegal netter with a fixed net on a beach, I have seen several occurences of this.Not only N/Wales.. the beaches between Liverpool and Southport had their share.
Drift nets, if lost for any reason continue to kill for years after ..used to be called .."Ghost"nets.. drifting around collecting fish untill the weight of bodies sank the net to the bottom, the crabs and lobsters then take over attracted by the rotting flesh they themselves get caught and die and so it continues....The Canadian government, some years ago were so worried about these "Ghost" nets, that they commissioned a vessel to collect these broken sections of net. The photographs of enormous heaps of mono netting lying on the decks were, in the pics i saw , only a few days work...Mono aint new for nets but any increase in gill netting is not to be desired

Si

[greyduster]

Can I ask a very succinct question.......
When will the forum address the home grown problems of Drift nets around the coast of Wales especially in those locations known as Bass Nursery areas, ie the Dee, Dyfi, Glaslyn, Conwy and those also of mid & S Wales where Sea trout congregate in big numbers
At the moment its becoming well known angling chat in the Llandudno area that Sea Anglers are so fed up with nets in the Conwy estuary and the lack of attention by the EA that the anglers are cutting up poachers nets in frustration.......
This never used to happen so who's the man responsible for patrolling the Conwy and is he doing his job?
Doesn't look like it does it!
The EA doesn't have a policy of Drift net management or controlled licensing in those estuaries where it is the local sea fisheries committee ie the Dee where drift netting is totally unmanaged and by all account out of hand!
Isn't it about time they were forced to address the issue by the fishery committee members both locally and at FERAC level

[Hoppy]

The following statement was issued by Stop Now on 17 May:



One small change re injunction extension.

Revised Statement

Stop Salmon Drift Nets Now Limited together with the Kerry Angling Federation this week obtained a High Court injunction preventing the South Western Regional Fisheries Board from authorising a draft net mixed stock salmon fishery within the Castlemaine Harbour in County Kerry. This injunction was extended with the consent of the South Western Regional Fisheries Board to 13 June 2007.



This common estuary hosts four salmon rivers namely the River Laune ,Caragh River, River Maine and the Behy River. The Maine and Behy rivers are closed to all exploitation of salmon, as they are deemed to be under their Conservation limit. Allowing netting in the common estuary would therefore seriously undermine efforts to rebuild salmon stocks in the area. Salmon stocks migrating to the Behy and Maine would be taken and killed in this fishery if allowed to proceed and as such these rivers would not recover.



The commitment to single stock management of our salmon resource and the harvesting of a sustainable surplus only is now well documented. This concept is enforced through recent Government legislation. Stop Now is fully focused on this concept and as such will defend vulnerable salmon stocks countrywide if necessary. Salmon must be protected and only stocks deemed to be in surplus can be exploited on a river by river basis.



All of the available research point to a serious decline of our salmon stocks. Many rivers are closed to angling and many more are operating on a catch and release basis only to protect the salmon. All rivers which are open for exploitation are on a strict quota scheme. Drift net fishing is gone and much of the traditional draft netting is severely curtailed. We are all making the necessary sacrifices which in time will benefit the whole community as well as the commercial, angling and tourism sectors but more importantly the Atlantic Salmon. Stop Now fully supports the commercial netting sector operating in a single stock environment.

It should be noted that recent legislation outlines all quotas applicable to specific river catchments and does not contain any mention of a quota for the area in question.



Thus the decision of the SWRFB to allow a mixed stock draft net fishery in Castlemaine estuary in contravention of the letter and spirit of recent conservation legislation was extraordinary. It demanded to be opposed by all of us, anglers, commercial fishermen and the community, who are determined to rescue the salmon stocks and to put them on a safe footing for future generations.