Commercial Catch & Release Fishermen Get The Hook
CANADA-- Commercial catch-and-release fishing is struggling to stay afloat. Like other fisheries, declining stocks and strong foreign competition are undermining the livelihood of this uniquely Canadian industry, and government subsidies are not expected to last much longer.
Private fisheries are expected to lay-off thousands of fisherman this year.
"There's no money in it," said Doug Sturgeon, a former commercial catch-and-release fisherman, "Without an increase in the fish subsidy we'll have to let even more people go than last year. That means we'll have even fewer fish to let go this season."
The Federal Fisheries Department has been regulating catch-and-release fishing since its inception in the 1960s. They are responsible for enforcing restrictions on the number of fish that can be caught and then let go.
"We've been allowing the number of licensed C&R fishers to decline naturally," said Fisheries supervisor Reggie Bass. "A lot of the old-timers are retiring, and among those that are left more and more of them are realizing that there is just isn't any money in catching and releasing fish."
Willy Derbisher is the captain of the Nothing But Net, a medium-sized trawler. "I've been catching pink salmon and letting them go for twenty-three years. I've fought against aboriginal catch-and-releasers, sports fishermen, and the government. There used to be huge profits, but those days have long since drifted out to sea."
Willy was lured into fishing at an early age. Willy's grandfather used to catch-and-release Dungeness crab, pulling up traps and then tossing the feisty pinching crustaceans back into the ocean.
"I was hooked after that," admitted Willy.
Catch and release fishing isn't without its own controversies. Ecologists are complaining about the long-term effects of catching-and-releasing.
"Catch-and-release fishing affects other lifeforms," said Peter Smelt, marine environmentalist. "What about the dolphins that are caught and released in these fishers' nets? What about the seals, porpoises, and horned otters? We, as human beings, need to cut ourselves loose from these old ways, and demand that more eco-friendly methods of catching-and-releasing are used."
The Fisheries Department didn't want to get baited into a debate, and simply stated that they were going to work on viable restrain and liberate solutions, and they let it go at that.
Photo: These commercial catch-and-release fishermen dump a netload of salmon back into the ocean.
CANADA-- Commercial catch-and-release fishing is struggling to stay afloat. Like other fisheries, declining stocks and strong foreign competition are undermining the livelihood of this uniquely Canadian industry, and government subsidies are not expected to last much longer.
Private fisheries are expected to lay-off thousands of fisherman this year.
"There's no money in it," said Doug Sturgeon, a former commercial catch-and-release fisherman, "Without an increase in the fish subsidy we'll have to let even more people go than last year. That means we'll have even fewer fish to let go this season."
The Federal Fisheries Department has been regulating catch-and-release fishing since its inception in the 1960s. They are responsible for enforcing restrictions on the number of fish that can be caught and then let go.
"We've been allowing the number of licensed C&R fishers to decline naturally," said Fisheries supervisor Reggie Bass. "A lot of the old-timers are retiring, and among those that are left more and more of them are realizing that there is just isn't any money in catching and releasing fish."
Willy Derbisher is the captain of the Nothing But Net, a medium-sized trawler. "I've been catching pink salmon and letting them go for twenty-three years. I've fought against aboriginal catch-and-releasers, sports fishermen, and the government. There used to be huge profits, but those days have long since drifted out to sea."
Willy was lured into fishing at an early age. Willy's grandfather used to catch-and-release Dungeness crab, pulling up traps and then tossing the feisty pinching crustaceans back into the ocean.
"I was hooked after that," admitted Willy.
Catch and release fishing isn't without its own controversies. Ecologists are complaining about the long-term effects of catching-and-releasing.
"Catch-and-release fishing affects other lifeforms," said Peter Smelt, marine environmentalist. "What about the dolphins that are caught and released in these fishers' nets? What about the seals, porpoises, and horned otters? We, as human beings, need to cut ourselves loose from these old ways, and demand that more eco-friendly methods of catching-and-releasing are used."
The Fisheries Department didn't want to get baited into a debate, and simply stated that they were going to work on viable restrain and liberate solutions, and they let it go at that.
Photo: These commercial catch-and-release fishermen dump a netload of salmon back into the ocean.
