Sharks, although we see ocean fisheries from two different view points I think we both share a love for the ocean and it's inhabitants.
Quote: | First off,
exactly where did I say that the commercial fishermen were to blame for fishery depletions. |
You didn't. I did, in a poor attempt to show that all forms of commercial fishing have serious environmental consequences. In my experience the
by-catch from long-lining pales in comparison to trawling. Purse seining, gill netting, hook and line all catch more than a few non-target species
but not to the extent that trawling and long- lining do. Any person who buys trawled rock fish, whiting, cod, pollock, sole ... contributes to the
decline of the ocean floor. Imo the most serious and lasting consequences of commercial fishing.
Which fishing method would have the smallest effect on the Sea of Cortez? Purse seining? Trawling? Imagine the impact that 10 ton purse sein
sets would have on the Sea of Cortez. Trawling is so damn productive that inshore Sea of Cortez would be fished out in no time!! Hook and line
would be nice but it is the least efficient of all the fishing methods. Are we willing to pay $10 a lb for jurel? All in all, long lining sems
like one of the better ways to fish the Sea of Cortez.
Supply=demand. It's easy to criticize long- lining but who is selling and purchasing fish caught with this method? If a person buys Alaskan
Halibut they are purchasing a fish caught on a long line. If there were no buyers there would be no sellers. Who are we to fault a panguero for
his fishing method when the restaurants eagerly buy his fish and sell it for 10x the amount they paid for it? Maybe consumer education would help
the situation out. But then again it might not. The incidental catch of a few eels and the mortality rate of bait probably won't get Americans in
an uproar like dead dolphins do.
Quote: | the crabbers are all driving nice new trucks here in Newport.... |
Usually a good sign that the stocks are going to collapse. Reminds me of Opilio (snow crab) in the late 90's. FAT quotas and
then...........nothing. We fished them out. But the money was good while it lasted. .
Again.... supply=demand. If people buy and sell a fish then somebody will catch it.... (Until the stocks are severely depressed). What the
oceans need are sane regulations and proper enforcement. Unfortunately due to the number of parties making a living off of fish it is difficult for
the various parties to come to a mutual agreement that will be benificial to whats most important. Healthy fish stocks.
[qoute] My dream has always been about a good managed fishery. It is my livelyhood, and I think with good data , methods and common sense we can
utilize most gamefish species, but when you have years of neglect, and idiots making decisions regarding an inexact complicated science like this it
forces drastic measures, sometimes too late. |