I don't think there's been any more controversial issue discussed in my New Jersey
visits than the proposal regarding Fluke fishing for 2007 and beyond. The proposal as discussed here on Fisherman's Headquarters site:  http://www.fishermansheadquarters.com/hot_issues1.htm 
has nearly EVERY shop owner from Cape May to Bayonne has telling me horror stories about what
will happen to not only their business, but its effect on their entire community.

 

The issue is complex...it's always a juggling act between environmental protection, commercial and leisure fishermen demands. As a salesman of fishing gear, with a large family of fluke rigs and hooks to promote to the leisure fisherman, you can imagine which side I would fall on if this legislation passes, which limits the leisure fluke fisherman to ONE FISH PER DAY.

Trust me, nobody is going to pay $40 or $50 dollars to a party boat captain for a night out for ONE FLUKE.  Nobody's going to pay to fuel up their boat (high cost to start with), tow it down to the launch and cast off for ONE FLUKE, and the surrounding businesses that thrive off of Fluke fishermen and tourist fluke fishermen's patronage will suffer from the absence of traffic.



###

The Honorable Frank E. Pallone

420 Cannon House Office Bldg.

Washington, DC 20510

Dear Representative Pallone,

As you know, recreational and commercial fishermen are facing deep cuts in the summer flounder quota for 2007 and into the future. The biomass of summer flounder is at the highest level ever recorded yet the National Marine Fisheries Service is threatening to significantly reduce quota. Their quota proposal will deny anglers a reasonable opportunity to land summer flounder for at least the next 3 years. The reason for these unprecedented restrictions is not just an unrealistic target biomass, but also the arbitrary l0 year rebuilding requirement of Magnuson-Stevens. NMFS says its hands are tied because of the 10 year rebuilding requirement.

Summer flounder stocks are robust and continue to rebuild, but NMFS says they are not rebuilding fast enough to meet Magnuson-Stevens’ 10 year rebuilding requirement. To meet that unrealistic goal, the quota will have to be reduced to a level that will not allow fishermen reasonable opportunities to land summer flounder. The result will be the destruction of livelihoods and devastation to fishing communities such as Belmar, Barnegat Light, Cape May, Brielle, the Atlantic Highlands and others. We need flexibility in rebuilding built into Magnuson-Stevens.

HR 5018 provides a valuable opportunity to address shortcomings in the current Magnuson-Stevens Act. I respectfully request that you support the fishing community on two important points;

1) to allow for flexibility in the 10 year rebuilding requirement for recovering stocks and

2) to remove language that requires that over fishing be ended in two years.

Even NMFS biologists and attorneys see the ten-year rebuilding period as arbitrary and support flexibility in the time frame. To now add an arbitrary period to end “over fishing” makes management even less flexible and more destructive.

These two critical points would not compromise the long-term sustainability of marine resources. They will help assure that the small businesses and culture which make up fishing communities survive, and allow reasonable fishing opportunities. Please support the fishing community.

Without the needed flexibility and elimination of a two-year end to “over fishing”, the infrastructure of the recreational fishing communities of New Jersey and other coastal states will be forever lost.

Respectfully submitted,

###



The above petition is circulating at several tackle shops to in an effort to stop this
legislation from going into effect. If you're a fluke fisherman, or someone who lives in the areas
affected (darn near all of the NEW JERSEY), I would STRONGLY encourage you to contact your local tackle shop
to get a copy, or simply print this one out yourself, sign it, and send it to:

 The Honorable Frank E. Pallone
      420 Cannon House Office Bldg.
       Washington, DC 20510

But don't stop with him. Every Representative from New Jersey should be made aware of the
potential devastation this will have on the Jersey Shore economy.  If you live in NJ, and you want
to know WHO your Congressman is, go here:  http://www.house.gov/writerep/ and follow the
instructions provided.

This is MID-TERM ELECTION YEAR.  They WILL listen to you.