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Bass Spawning Petition


Adam F
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The intention of this petition is to force Guernsey's Sea Fisheries dept. to declare a 'close season' for bass between January and April. This is to allow the slow-growing bass to spawn and ensure sufficient stocks for future generations. Many tons of spawning bass are currently being taken by the Guernsey Commercial fleet, bass that YOU will be fishing for in the summer, wherever you are in the channel.

 

http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/bassdebate

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Signed above petition due to thinking that commerical catching of spawning fish does not make sense.

 

Then read the posts on what is actually happening in Guernsey and it is quite appalling. Pictures of the boats and description lifted form the forum below ( I am sure they will not mind ).

 

Guernsey Bass Slaughter

 

user posted image

user posted image

 

"For those of you that have only read the press or had a bit of hearsay, here's the real deal, cos' I've been there and seen it (it was my photo in the press).

If the weather is nice enough, there will be 15-20 commercial boats there all day long, with maybe 5 or 6 unlicensed boats at weekends. All shapes and sizes from the Claire-Dale (19ft open dinghy) to the Nicola May (50ft+ trawler). All the boats are fishing rod & line, there is no other way to fish the mark. When the tide is running each rod will catch a fish a drift, virtually guaranteed. The fish are basically sat in the lee of the reef sheltering from the tide, and the area fished is about the size of the Albert marina. On a 9m+ tide the fish are usually bigger than 6lb, on smaller tides the average size decreases with a lot more small (<5lb) fish caught. Sea Fisheries have made the point that 'the small fish can be put back as rod & line is used'. The reality is that the commercials are putting nothing back, as all fish caught are above size limits. The bass are caught on live eels, yanns and various redgills/shads etc. with live eels much better on small tides.

It is common for the boats to take 200KILOS PER ROD, PER DAY on the bigger tides. That's around 450lb, or 8 boxes of bass in our money. Either Richard Seager or Richard Keen reckoned he was getting a TONNE every 2 or 3 days. This is not an exagguration, I've seen 4 boats land 60 boxes between them one saturday a month ago.

As the mark is with the 3 mile limit, I think only local boats can fish it, however I'm not sure, so I'd appreciate it if previous posters could remove the name of the exact location, you never know who's reading this!!

If things do not change the mark WILL get fished out. Bass are lazy, and will sit in the most sheltered spot away from the tide. When these fish are caught, others move in to take their place, and in turn they are caught. This will go on and on until it becomes uneconomic to fish for them. Seeing as there's nothing much else to go for at this time of year the single handed 22ft potters with a small diesel engine can make it pay with very few fish, and consequently the shoal will be wiped out.

 

Those of you that are staying away from the mark out of principle, don't bother, just go there, catch, and return your fish, no one's forcing you to keep them!! If you upset the commercial boys, so much the better! OK, so the bass don't fight as well as the summer fish, but the size makes up for it. "

 

 

 

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Not that I don't agree with the petition, I'd signed when it first went up yesterday; BUT I think we have gone about it the wrong way.

The Gurnsey fishery dept isn't going to listen to a bunch of blokes 100's of miles away, who by large has no connection, nor will they benefit the Gurnsey treasury.

All they see is

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Kam, I can see what you re saying...BUT..

 

We are not just a bunch of blokes 100's miles away - the petition shows 500 names and comments from people who ARE involved in the island and its tourism - we are off to Alderney next month for example.

 

It is probably a splash in the ocean, but I applaud it in a time when little else is done apart from talks at goverment levels, things like this surely must help.

 

Adam

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I wasn't suggesting 'not do anything', I was merely pointing a 'parallel' course of action should be carried out at the same time, targeting the Gurnsey Tourism as well as neighbouring states, hoping pressures internally (Tourism) and externally (Jersey, Alderney).

 

The fishery dept is under pressure from the commercial fisherman to let them fish. To counter that we need another dept as well as other states/countries.

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Kam,

 

I agree - but sadly these things take so much time that I feel it may be too late in many cases....

The petition or standing as a MP? tongue.gif

 

Seriously, it can be done relatively easy. As a tourist, you have a right ( you are a customer to them) to tell each of the island what you think and they will listen if the number is large enough.

 

If anyone is going or had been to the island in the last 12 months. Write to their tourism board, tell them how disgusted you are with this.

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