scooter
06-12-2008, 11:19 AM
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is proposing a rule that would require recreational anglers and spearfishers who fish in federal ocean waters to join a national registry.
The agency is trying to close an information gap about the exact number of saltwater anglers and their effect on fish populations. The proposal would require the registration of those who catch fish like striped bass, salmon and shad that spawn in rivers and streams but spend their adult lives in estuaries and the ocean.
The agency wants anglers to register each year, beginning in 2009. Registration would be free until 2011, when a fee, probably $15 to $25, would be imposed.
"We expect that we may get some resistance to it," said Monica Allen, a spokeswoman for the NOAA Fisheries Service.
Agency officials said they were not sure what penalties anglers would face if they did not register, but they said their initial goal was education. Federal waters are located three miles off the coast in most states.
The move pleased some groups, like the American Sportfishing Association, which says that more accurate information will lead to more fair regulation of recreational fishers.
"Any additional information on recreational fishing can only help to improve and better inform management decisions made by the states and the regional fishery management councils," said Patty Doerr, the ocean resource policy director for the group.
The oceanic agency collects its data about recreational saltwater anglers by taking surveys using telephone books for coastal communities and asking if anyone in the household goes fishing. It also does direct "intercept" surveys by asking anglers about their catch as they return to shore.
The agency hopes that more data regarding these fishing trips will help bolster the value of recreational fishing to communities.
Ultimately, the oceanic agency hopes that starting the federal registry will encourage states to adopt their own registries. If they did so, the money raised from registration could be used for habitat restoration and the management of fisheries.
All funds from the federal registry would go to the United States Treasury.
States on the West Coast, the Gulf Coast and the South Atlantic offer saltwater fishing licenses. Hawaii does not; neither do states from New Jersey to Maine.
Anglers younger than 16 would not have to register and fees would be waived for people that fish for food as part of ancient cultural traditions, according to the agency.
Anglers who fish only on licensed party or charter boats would be exempt.
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PUBLICATION: The New York Times
DATE: 2008.06.12
EDITION: Late Edition - Final
SECTION: Sports
PAGE: 3
COLUMN: OUTDOORS
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
BYLINE: AUSTIN BOGUES
WORD COUNT: 364
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The agency is trying to close an information gap about the exact number of saltwater anglers and their effect on fish populations. The proposal would require the registration of those who catch fish like striped bass, salmon and shad that spawn in rivers and streams but spend their adult lives in estuaries and the ocean.
The agency wants anglers to register each year, beginning in 2009. Registration would be free until 2011, when a fee, probably $15 to $25, would be imposed.
"We expect that we may get some resistance to it," said Monica Allen, a spokeswoman for the NOAA Fisheries Service.
Agency officials said they were not sure what penalties anglers would face if they did not register, but they said their initial goal was education. Federal waters are located three miles off the coast in most states.
The move pleased some groups, like the American Sportfishing Association, which says that more accurate information will lead to more fair regulation of recreational fishers.
"Any additional information on recreational fishing can only help to improve and better inform management decisions made by the states and the regional fishery management councils," said Patty Doerr, the ocean resource policy director for the group.
The oceanic agency collects its data about recreational saltwater anglers by taking surveys using telephone books for coastal communities and asking if anyone in the household goes fishing. It also does direct "intercept" surveys by asking anglers about their catch as they return to shore.
The agency hopes that more data regarding these fishing trips will help bolster the value of recreational fishing to communities.
Ultimately, the oceanic agency hopes that starting the federal registry will encourage states to adopt their own registries. If they did so, the money raised from registration could be used for habitat restoration and the management of fisheries.
All funds from the federal registry would go to the United States Treasury.
States on the West Coast, the Gulf Coast and the South Atlantic offer saltwater fishing licenses. Hawaii does not; neither do states from New Jersey to Maine.
Anglers younger than 16 would not have to register and fees would be waived for people that fish for food as part of ancient cultural traditions, according to the agency.
Anglers who fish only on licensed party or charter boats would be exempt.
--------------------------------------------------
PUBLICATION: The New York Times
DATE: 2008.06.12
EDITION: Late Edition - Final
SECTION: Sports
PAGE: 3
COLUMN: OUTDOORS
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
BYLINE: AUSTIN BOGUES
WORD COUNT: 364
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