JCAA NEWSPAPER JUNE
2014
Official Newspaper of the JERSEY COAST ANGLERS ASSOCIATION
(Published on May 20th, 2014)
Monthly Meeting at Jersey Coast
Shark Anglers, 385 Herbertsville Road, Brick
"WORKING
FOR MARINE RECREATIONAL ANGLERS"
JCAA REGULAR
MEETING:
Tuesday, May 27th, 2014
Starting at 7:30
PM
AT JERSEY COAST SHARK ANGLERS
NEXT JCAA BOARD MEETING
Thursday, June 12th, 2014
Starting at 7:30 PM at JCAA Office
OFFICIAL
NEWSPAPER OF THE
JERSEY COAST ANGLERS
ASSOC.
1201 Route 37 East, Suite 9, Toms River, NJ 08753
Phone 732-506-6565 Fax 732-506-6975
JCAA Newspaper
Publisher Tom Fote
JCAA Newspaper
Editor Paul Turi
This publication
is printed and mailed one week prior to each regular monthly meeting of the
Jersey Coast Anglers Association. One of
the prime goals of JCAA is to get accurate information into public hands as
soon as possible.
Anyone wishing to
reproduce any part of this newsletter has the permission of the JCAA and the
authors. Wherever possible, please credit the JCAA Newsletter as your
information source.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JCAA General Membership Meetings are for club
representatives and invited guests only.
These meetings are not open to the general public. If you would like to attend as a guest, call
the President at 908-913-0551 or Tom Fote at
(732) 270-9102 before the meeting date to ask permission.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2014
OFFICERS
President Paul Haertel 973-943-8201
1st
V.P. Don Marantz 908-3471434
2nd
V.P. Mark Taylor 732-245-9445
Treasurer Doug Tegeder 732-341-5674
Rec.
Sec. Tom Siciliano 609-296-3774
Cors. Sec. Paul Turi 609-660-2126
Mem.
Sec. John Toth 732-656-0139
Tournament
Dir. Paul Turi 609-660-2126
Committee &
Chairpersons listed on last page
IMPORTANT DATES
May 27th JCAA General Meeting
August 2ndd
JCAA Fluke Tournament
August 6th,
JCAA Awards Presentations
May 27th,
JCAA General Membership Mtg.
June 12th,
JCAA Board Meeting
June 24th,
JCAA General Membership Mtg.
President’s Report
By Paul Haertel
So many fish, so
little time - that is the problem.
Fishing has definitely picked up with some nice bass being caught,
several all out bluefish blitzes along
our beaches and a few nice weakfish around as well. Sea bass season will be open by the time this
goes to print and fluke season will be opening on 5/23, just in time for
Memorial Day weekend. Now if only the
weather and my wife cooperate, I should be into some good fishing.
Kidding aside
though, this has been the busiest year for JCAA that I can remember. We have been working hard to try to stop
seismic blasting, beach replenishment and jetty notching in the Loch Arbor to
Elberon area, and sand mining of lumps such as Manasquan Ridge. We are also preparing for next year's battles
over the regionalization issue as it pertains to fluke. We are seeking
political help in all these areas as well as assistance to ensure that our
state will be treated more fairly by the ASMFC in the future. On top of all
this the ASMFC is considering making changes to reduce the mortality on striped
bass. The exact options are still very much in doubt and everything including
public comment is being delayed. It
seems to me that there is one group that prefers status quo and another
possibly even larger group that wants the mortality decreased
substantially. The problem is that just
like striper fishermen, our fisheries managers have many varying opinions and
it will be difficult to get a consensus.
I attended the
NJMFC meeting on 5/1/14 and was pleased with some of the action the council
took. They voted in favor of the special pilot program for Island Beach
State Park
The NJMFC also
voted to write letters opposing seismic blasting off of Barnegat Inlet. They
also voted to write letters opposing sand being taken from lumps such as
Manasquan Ridge to use for beach replenishment.
Lastly, just a
couple reminders, there is still time to buy tickets for our High Roller
Raffle. We have some really great prizes and the drawing will be held
5/27. Nominations for the Sportsperson
of the Year and the Youth Education Awards must be in by June this year. Our fluke tournament will be on August 2nd
followed by the awards ceremony on August 6th.
To spice things up we have added a new optional cash category. Please read all the details elsewhere in the
newsletter and sign up! This is one of our major fundraisers and we need your
support.
20th Annual Fluke Tournament
By
Paul Turi, Tournament Director
Our first
mailing for the tournament went out a couple weeks ago. Included in the envelope were tickets for our
High Roller Raffle, an Express Entry Form for the tournament, and a hat & t-shirt
order form. Entries for the tournament
have been coming in, along with hat and t-shirt orders and High Roller Raffle
tickets.
I
should mention at this time we do not yet have a design ready for the hats and
t-shirts. They are being worked on as I
write this column. I should have the
hats and t-shirts in stock by the middle of June at which time we will begin
mailing them out to those of you who have placed orders.
Affidavits
for those of you who have already entered the tournament will be going out by
the end of the week or early next week.
We
are also in the process of updating our website. Right now you can go to our website and print
out an entry form for the tournament, order hats and t-shirts and either mail
or fax the orders to the JCAA office. I
am also working on getting our online Eventbrite order forms for the tournament
and hats and t-shirts up on the site.
That should be up there in the next several days. Once that is available you will be able to
enter the tournament and order hats and t-shirts and pay by credit card right
from your computer.
I
should mention that in our first mailing there is an error in a couple places
on the Express Entry Form. It seems no
matter how many eyes we put on these things something always seems to slip
by. As you may or may not know at this
time, we will not be having
our awards presentations this year at the Golden Nugget Hotel/Casino in
Atlantic City. For whatever reason, the
powers that be at the Golden Nugget have decided not to be a sponsor this year
and we received that information late in the game and were not able to secure
another AC hotel. The Express Entry
Form erroneously indicated that we would be at the Golden Nugget. This
year we will be having our Awards Presentations at the Holiday Inn on Rte. 72
in Manahawkin (Stafford Twp.) I have
received a number of emails and phone calls on this because of the
confusion. So let me be clear, the Awards Presentations will be at the Holiday Inn
in Manahawkin on Wednesday – Yes, Wednesday – August 6th, 2014. Fishing will be on Saturday, August 2nd and the awards will be handed out
on Wednesday, August 6th
at the Holiday Inn. We will begin
registrations at 5:00 PM and start the awards presentations at 7:00 PM.
Let’s
talk about what’s new this year. The Grand Prize this year will be a 14’
Starcraft Boat, a 20 HP Yamaha Motor and a Sea Lion Trailer. The package is worth about $9,000! In addition,
this year we are adding an Optional Cash
Category to the tournament. I have
received a number of phone calls on this also.
It seems a lot of people don’t know what this is. The Optional Cash Category is just that – it
is optional. You do not have to enter
that part of the tournament. For those
of you who do enter the Optional Cash Category part of the tournament, the fee
is an additional $60.00 to enter. You
will only be competing against those who enter the Optional Cash Category for
the port that you signed up for.
Two-thirds of the money will be paid out to the winner with the largest
fish who entered the Optional Cash Category and one-third will go to JCAA. In effect, it is a winner-take-all. You must be entered in the Optional Cash
Category to be eligible to win the money.
If you weigh in the largest fish for your port and you did not enter the
Optional Cash Category, you do not win the cash. The person who entered the Optional Cash
Category and had the largest fish will receive two-thirds of the money
collected for that port. JCAA will
retain one-third of the money.
I
would like to give a big shout-out and thank you to Grumpy’s in Seaside Park.
Grumpy’s donated 9 Tica rods for the tournament. The rods have a retail value over a hundred
dollars. We will be adding a nice reel
and line to the rod and that will make for a nice port prize for each of our 9
ports.
We
still need some more port prizes. If
your company would like to donate anything as door prizes or port prizes, please
let me know. We also still have four
ports that need sponsors who would be willing to put up the 1st
place prize money of $1,200. Right now
we have five port sponsors. RJ Marine Service in Cape May is
sponsoring the Cape May Port and is putting up the 1st place prize
of $1,200 for that port. Liberty Landing Marina in Jersey City is
putting up the $1,200 for that port. Hoffman’s Marina in Brielle is
providing the $1,200 1st place prize for the Manasquan Port. South
Harbor Marina in Waretown is providing the $1,200 1st place
prize for the Barnegat Bay Port. Fisherman’s Headquarters in Ship Bottom
– as always – is providing the $1,200 1st place prize for the Long
Beach Island Port.
Our major sponsors this year are West
Marine, Costa Sunglasses, Interlux Paints, The Fisherman Magazine, Yamaha
Motors, Canyon Reels and RJ Marine Service.
These companies are putting up cash and/or merchandise that is worth a minimum of
$3,000!
RJ Marine Service in Cape May not only
is donating a 14’ Starcraft Boat but they are also putting up the $1,200 1st
place prize for the Cape May Port.
Costa Sunglasses is donating a nice
prize for each of the 9 ports as they do every year.
Our
friends over at The Fisherman Magazine
in addition to donating door prizes & port prizes for each of the 9 ports
is also donating full page ads to JCAA to advertise the tournament, amongst
other things.
Yamaha Motors is donating a 20HP engine
for the Starcraft Boat that RJ Marine
Service is donating.
Last
year Canyon Reels was very generous
to JCAA and this year they are coming up big-time. They are donating thousands of dollars in
high quality reels for each of the 9 ports.
We will have enough reels to make two high end port prizes for each of
the 9 ports!
West Marine again this year is donating
gift certificates for each of the 9 ports in addition to giving us numerous
door prizes. West Marine has also been very generous to JCAA over the years.
I
would be remiss if I did not mention Sea
Lion Trailers. Sea Lion, although not a major sponsor, is donating a Sea Lion Trailer for the 14’ Starcraft
Boat that RJ Marine Service is
donating.
Our
friends over at the Holiday Inn on
Rte. 72 in Manahawkin are helping us out in a pinch this year. They are providing a very nice ballroom for
us to have our awards ceremony this year at a very reduced price. They are also cutting their room rate for
those who desire to stay over that night.
And they are also going to give a discount or a free drink to anyone
desiring to have dinner. They are also
donating some rooms to JCAA at no charge!
Management suggests anyone desiring to stay over should make a
reservation well in advance.
Remember,
Atlantic City is only 40-45 minutes from Manahawkin via the Parkway. Long Beach Island is a stone’s throw from the
Holiday Inn. If anyone wants to come
down to LBI and make a day of it prior to the awards presentations, LBI has
some of the nicest beaches along our coast for anyone who just wants to bake in
the sun. There’s also boat rentals
available for crabbing or fishing for the day.
There are also many fine bars and restaurants on the island. Bay Village and Fantasy Island with all the
shopping and amusements will keep adults and kids busy. There are plenty of things to do on LBI for
those who want to make a day of it.
So
mark your calendar for fishing the tournament on August 2nd and the
Awards Presentations on Wednesday, August 6th. If you have any questions on the tournament
or would like to register by phone, call the JCAA office at (732) 506-6565 and
I can take your order over the phone via credit card. If no one answers, leave a message and I will
call you back.
Fisheries Management & Legislative Report
By Thomas Fote
States Might Take Over Intercepts for
MRIP
I attended an ASMFC workshop on state implementation of the
dockside survey of the Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP).
There is a proposal for the states to take over the contracting work for the
dockside intercepts. This would be a
move in the right direction. The Gulf Commission and the Pacific Commission are
already doing this. There are already
states along the east coast who are the contractors for the intercepts. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries
Commission would be the contractor to distribute the funds to the states. The biggest concern I have is that there is
no money in the New Jersey budget to pay for this and we continue to have
difficulty hiring any employees for NJ Fish and Wildlife. NMFS is talking about providing funding to
hire the staff and pay for any additional needs. I am not sure how we circumvent the hiring
freeze but ASMFC could hire for New Jersey.
This contract needs to be for more than one year since you don’t want to
start something new and quit after one year.
This could be the beginning of getting better intercepts because it
would provide consistency, not a new contractor every year. The state would be better equipped to hire
and train the personnel and keep track of the data.
Senator Bob Smith’s Senate Resolution against Mandatory Summer
Founder Regionalization and removing the NMFS & US Fish and Wildlife
Service as voting members of the ASMFC.
I attended a
Senate Environment Committee meeting on May 19th where Senator Bob
Smith’s resolution opposing summer flounder forced regionalization and
requesting a removal of voting rights for NMFS and the US Fish and Wildlife
Service was passed unanimously. Senator
Smith is also working on resolutions on seismic blasting and sand mining. He hopes to have those passed at the next
committee meeting. Senator Smith’s
support and hard work have been invaluable.
Call your Senator and ask for co-sponsorship of this resolution. JCAA will be looking for a sponsor in the
Assembly to introduce the same resolution.
JCAA sent a letter
to Governor Christie on all of these issues.
We are waiting for a reply. As a
Commissioner to ASMFC I am looking for a discussion of the summer flounder
forced regionalization and removing the voting rights for NMFS and US Fish and
Wildlife Service at the August meeting.
MSA Reauthorization
The Magnusson/Stevens
Reauthorization is moving forward. We
had a workshop at the ASMFC meeting discussing their involvement. American Sportfishing Association, Center for
Coastal Conservation, National Marine Manufacturers Association and Coastal
Conservation Association wrote a response to the Hastings Bill on the
reauthorization. That letter is included
below. JCAA is continuing to gather
information on the MSA reauthorization and will be working with other
organizations to develop our final comments.
Even though we do not expect passage this year, it is important that the
research begins. Tom Siciliano is the
chairman of the JCAA committee dealing with the reauthorization. If you want more information, please email tfote@jcaa.org and I will send you the current
position papers that are available from other organizations.
Sand Mining & Seismic Blasting
I was hoping the resolution on
sand mining and seismic blasting would have been considered on May 19th. However, the resolutions needed additional
work before being introduced. JCAA is
involved with a strong coalition working in opposition to both sand mining and
seismic blasting. The Federal and State
Legislators I have spoken with have fully supported JCAA’s position. Below is information about the Clean Ocean
Action petition on seismic blasting.
Clean Ocean Action is hoping for 25,000 signatures by Memorial Day
weekend. With the over 1 million
sportsmen we have in New Jersey, this should be easy if we spread the
word. A million signatures would be even
better. Get your friends, neighbors,
family members and fellow anglers to log into the webpage and sign.
SENATE RESOLUTION No. 68
STATE OF NEW JERSEY 216th
LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED MAY 5, 2014
Sponsored by:Senator BOB SMITH District 17 (Middlesex and
Somerset)
SYNOPSIS
Urges Atlantic States
Marine Fisheries Commission to reject mandatory regionalization for 2015 under
summer flounder management program.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Senate Resolution urging the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries
Commission to reject mandatory regionalization for 2015 under the summer
flounder management program.
Whereas, Summer
flounder are among the most sought after commercial and recreational fish along
the Atlantic Coast and, in particular, New Jersey; and
Whereas, Summer
flounder fisheries are managed cooperatively by the states through the Atlantic
States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) in state waters; and
Whereas, The
ASMFC is responsible for developing summer flounder fishery regulations, as
part of the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan;
and
Whereas, The
plan seeks to ensure the protection and maintenance of the summer flounder
resource, primarily through harvest limits, which are divided between
commercial and recreational fisheries in each state; and
Whereas, Since
2001, the plan has allowed for, and the ASMFC has utilized, a state-by-state
allocation formula for recreational fishing, based on estimates of state
recreational landings from 1998, to establish individual state harvest limits;
and
Whereas, Under
the plan, each state has flexibility to devise conservation equivalent
management measures, including minimum fish size limits, bag limits, and
seasons, to reach its target harvest limit; and
Whereas,
Previously, states were permitted to voluntarily combine their harvest limits
with other states to create a region, which could mitigate the potential
disproportionate impacts resulting from coast-wide management measures; and
Whereas,
Nevertheless, there was concern among some states that the regulations set
forth under the plan were not providing recreational fishermen in some states
along the coast with equitable access to the summer flounder fishery; and
Whereas,
Consequently, the ASMFC adopted Addendum XXV to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and
Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan, which imposed mandatory regionalization
on certain states, including New Jersey; and
Whereas, Under
Addendum XXV, New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut must combine their summer
flounder quotas and adopt regional management measures that meet the
recreational harvest limit for the 2014 season; and
Whereas,
Although Addendum XXV states that regionalization “allows states the
flexibility to mitigate potential disproportionate impacts” and “pursue more
equitable harvest opportunities,” it does not explain what those impacts are,
or how regionalization is the most effective
and fair method for improving management; and
Whereas, To
date, there has been no formal explanation as to why regionalization is the
best response; and
Whereas,
Imposing mandatory regionalization, while perhaps addressing the concerns of
some states, has the undue effect of reducing New Jersey’s and other states’
harvest limits, thus hurting fishermen all along the Atlantic Coast; and
Whereas, New
Jersey anglers are projected to lose approximately 20 percent of their flounder
catch in 2014 due to mandatory regionalization; and
Whereas, The
ASMFC first proposed Addendum XXV at its December 2013 meeting, and approved it
on February 4, 2014, leaving interested parties with little or no time to
consider the consequences of this radical departure from previous management
measures; and
Whereas, A short
public comment period was held, along with several public hearings, and the
vast majority of parties, including three of New Jersey’s largest recreational
fishing organizations, opposed mandatory regionalization; and
Whereas, On
January 22, 2014, two members of New Jersey’s Congressional delegation
published a letter calling on the ASMFC to oppose regionalization until a
thorough, inclusive evaluation of the plan could be carried out; and
Whereas, Despite
this, two federal agencies with voting rights on the ASMFC, the National Marine
Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service
(USFWS), cast deciding votes in favor of the measure; and
Whereas, NMFS
and USFWS undertook this action with no explanation, and with little or no
evaluation of the adverse economic impacts of the new measures on New Jersey
anglers; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved
by the Senate of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Atlantic States Marine
Fisheries Commission is respectfully urged to reject mandatory regionalization
in 2015 under the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management
Plan. The commission is also urged to
re-examine the voting rights of the National Marine Fisheries Service and the
United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the
Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to the
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, the Commissioner of the New Jersey
Department of Environmental Protection, and every member of the New Jersey
Congressional delegation.
STATEMENT
This resolution respectfully urges the Atlantic States
Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) to reject mandatory regionalization in 2015
under the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management
Plan.
Summer flounder fisheries are managed cooperatively by
the states through the ASMFC in state waters.
The ASMFC is responsible for developing summer flounder fishery
regulations, as part of the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery
Management Plan. The plan utilizes a
state-by-state allocation formula for recreational fishing, based on estimates
of state recreational landings in 1998, to establish individual state harvest
limits. Under the plan, each state has
flexibility to devise conservation equivalent management measures, including
minimum fish size limits and bag limits, to reach its target harvest
limit. Previously, states were permitted
to voluntarily combine their harvest limits with other states to create a
region, which could mitigate the potential disproportionate impacts resulting
from coast-wide management.
Nevertheless, there was concern among some states that
the regulations set forth under the plan were not providing recreational fishermen
in some states along the coast with equitable access to the summer flounder
fishery. Consequently, the ASMFC adopted
Addendum XXV, which imposed mandatory regionalization on certain states. Under Addendum XXV, New Jersey, New York, and
Connecticut must combine their summer flounder quotas and adopt regional
management measures that meet the recreational harvest limit for the 2014
season. To date, there has been no
formal explanation of how this new measure impacts flounder fishermen, or of
how it is the most effective and fair method for improving management. In fact, imposing mandatory regionalization
has the undue effect of reducing New Jersey’s and other states’ harvest limits,
thus hurting fishermen all along the Atlantic Coast.
The ASMFC adopted Addendum XXV with little public
input, and in spite of serious opposition.
The ASMFC first proposed Addendum XXV at its December 2013 meeting, and
approved it on February 4, 2014, leaving interested parties with little or no
time to consider the consequences of the measure. A short public comment period was held, along
with several public hearings, and the vast majority of parties, including three
of New Jersey’s largest recreational fishing organizations, opposed
regionalization. Two members of New
Jersey’s Congressional delegation also opposed the measure. Despite this, and with little or no
substantive evaluation, the two federal agencies with voting rights on the
ASMFC, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the United States Fish
and Wildlife Service (USFWS), cast deciding votes in favor of the measure.
For this reason, the resolution also urges the ASMFC
to re-examine the voting rights of NMFS and USFWS.
Clean Ocean Action Petition on Seismic
Blasting
Stop Seismic Testing off the NJ Coast This June, All Marine
Life at Risk
author: Clean Ocean Action
target: President Barack Obama, New Jersey Governor Chris
Christie, Rutgers University President Robert Barchi
signatures: As of May 17 there were13,078, help us get to 25,000
by May 26, 2014
A research study
led by Rutgers University and funded by the National Science Foundation is
proposed for this June to blast the ocean with sound pulses that are orders of
magnitude louder than a jet engine taking off, every 5 seconds, 24 hours a day,
for 30 days. These explosive sounds will have devastating impacts on all marine
life, including whales, dolphins, sea turtles, fish and shellfish. They will
also harm NJ’s tourism and fishing industries.
We the
undersigned oppose the NJ Seismic blasting study proposed for this summer, and
we call upon our elected leaders including President Obama and Governor
Christie to stop this study. Furthermore, we urge President Robert Barchi of
Rutgers University to stop this study before its proposed June 3 start date.
For more information on who is
conducting the study and the impacts to marine life, visit cleanoceanaction.org
.
To receive status updates on this
issue, sign the petition go to http://www.thepetitionsite.com/230/078/429/stop-seismic-testing-off-nj-coast-this-june/.
COMMISSIONER WORKSHOP ON THE MARINE RECREATIONAL
INFORMATION
PROGRAM (MAY 14, 2014)
Meeting Summary
The
Commission and the Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program (ACCSP) held
a joint workshop on state implementation of the dockside survey of the Marine
Recreational Information Program (MRIP). The
workshop provided Commissioners with information on proposed transitioning of
the dockside survey from a federal contractor to state agencies. The survey is
used in part to develop recreational catch and effort estimates. Transitioning
to state conduct of the dockside survey was originally requested by several
states and has been supported by MRIP, with ASMFC/ACCSP to serve the role as
central survey coordinator for the Atlantic coast. A series of presentations
was given on state implementation transition options, an overview of costs, and
the experiences of states who are already conducting the recreational dockside
survey (select Atlantic and Gulf states, and the Gulf States Marine Fisheries
Commission). The Atlantic states, ASMFC/ACCSP, and NMFS MRIP will continue
planning over the next several months toward possible state implementation of
the survey starting in January, 2016. For more information, please contact
Geoff White, ACCSP Data Team, at gwhite@accsp.org
ASMFC Atlantic Striped Bass
Draft Addendum Development Continues
FOR IMMEDIATE, MAY 16, 2014
PRESS CONTACT, TINA BERGER,
703.842.0740
Alexandria, VA – The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries
Commission’s Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board met to review and consider
approval of Draft Addendum IV to Amendment 6 to the Interstate Fishery
Management Plan for Atlantic Striped Bass for public comment. The Draft
Addendum will propose new fishing mortality reference points, as recommended by
the 2013 benchmark stock assessment, and associated management measures to
achieve the proposed target fishing mortality rate. While the Board did not
approve the document for public comment, it approved substantive changes to the
document and will reconsider a revised draft for public comment at the
Commission’s Summer Meeting in August.
The most significant change was the addition of a
three-year timeframe to reduce fishing mortality to its target with options to
achieve the reduction in harvest incrementally over the three years. This extended timeframe is intended to lessen
the impacts of taking the required harvest reductions in one year. As a result,
the Draft Addendum will propose measures to achieve the required reduction all
in one year or incrementally over three years.
The Board also received a report from the Technical
Committee on the development of Chesapeake Bay specific fishing mortality
reference points for inclusion in the Drat Addendum. Due to the nature of the
fishery, which targets smaller and predominantly male fish, the Technical
Committee could not develop Bay-specific reference points at this time. It
reported the reference points approved for management use in the 2013 benchmark
stock assessment represent the best available scientific advice to manage
fishing mortality on the entire striped bass population. The proposed coastwide
target fishing mortality rate is designed to maintain the spawning stock
biomass at its target level over the long-term. The effects of the Bay’s
harvest of smaller fish on the total coastwide stock are already incorporated
into the coastwide population reference points due to different selectivity
patterns for the Bay and coastal fishing fleets.
The Atlantic striped bass stock is not overfished and
overfishing is not occurring under the proposed reference points. While the
stock has declined, it remains at levels similar to 1995 when the stock was
declared recovered. The revised Draft Addendum will continue to focus on the
same management measures that are currently used to regulate the coastal and
Chesapeake Bay striped bass fisheries – recreational bag and size limits, and
adjustments to the commercial quotas.
The Board established a subgroup to work closely with the Plan
Development Team to help guide the inclusion of the new options. The revised
Draft Addendum will be considered by the Board for approval for public comment
in August, with public hearings conducted throughout the fall and final
addendum approval slated for October at the Commission’s Annual Meeting. If
approved, the states would then implement management measures in early 2015.
For more information, please contact, Mike Waine, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator,
at mwaine@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.
Recreational Fishing and Boating Community’s Response to
House Natural Resources MSA Reauthorization Discussion
Draft
Recreational Fishing and Boating Community’s Response to
House Natural Resources MSA Reauthorization Discussion Draft
In December, 2013,
House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings released a
"Discussion Draft" of a Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act (MSA) reauthorization bill, which provides the first concrete
proposal in this Congress for reauthorizing and amending the nation’s federal
saltwater fisheries management law. The draft legislation has provisions that
the recreational fishing and boating community supports as well as language we
oppose in its current form. Additionally, several key issues of high importance
to our community are not addressed.
Below is our response to specific provisions of interest to
our community relative to the MSA Discussion Draft.
Positives:
Section 4 provides
several broad exemptions from the current strict Annual Catch Limit (ACL)
requirement in the MSA that has caused considerable concern within the
recreational fishing community, particularly in the South Atlantic and Gulf of
Mexico regions. In addition, this same section includes language previously
supported by our organizations to exempt ecosystem component species (i.e.,
non-target or incidentally harvested stocks) from the ACL requirement. This
section introduces some new concepts that warrant further examination, but in
general it provides much needed relief from the ACL requirement where
appropriate.
Section 6
provides greater transparency and public involvement in the meetings of the
Regional Fishery Management Councils and their Science and Statistical
Committees (SSCs). We believe this is a positive change that will mitigate the
potential for misconduct within the Councils and SSCs, and will allow greater
involvement for anglers in the regulatory process.
Section 7
requires that, prior to the implementation of a new catch shares program on the
Atlantic Coast and Gulf of Mexico, a referendum is held in which the majority
of eligible participants in the fishery support it. If this language is
interpreted to mean that recreational fishermen are eligible to participate in
the referendum, we support allowing anglers to have a say in catch shares
programs because they have significant, long-term impacts on management and
allocations of mixed-use fisheries.
Section 10 would
establish a Cooperative Research Program for the Gulf of Mexico and South
Atlantic Regional Councils for data poor stocks. The section requires stock
surveys and stock assessments for the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic on a
continuous 5-year basis, giving priority to those stocks that are commercially
or recreationally important. Provided there is
funding for this additional data
collection, this would be a positive change to better manage red snapper and
other data poor stocks.
Section 13
dictates that the MSA will be the relevant fishery management law within
National Marine Sanctuaries or in marine designations under the Antiquities
Act. In addition, for fisheries restricted under the Endangered Species Act,
the processes and time schedules prescribed in MSA for rebuilding stocks will
be implemented. This is a positive change to bring consistent federal fishery
management under the MSA.
Concerns:
Section 3 incorporates several provisions from previously
introduced bills to create greater flexibility in the rebuilding requirements
of MSA. While we agree that the 10-year rebuilding timeline currently required
under the MSA is overly strict and that additional flexibility should be
incorporated into the law, we believe the language as drafted provides
excessive exemptions and does not strike the appropriate balance of ensuring
fisheries sustainability while considering impacts on commercial and
recreational fishermen.
Section 5 creates a new term of “depleted” with respect to
fish stock status, and replaces this term for “overfished” throughout the Act.
The exact implications of this action are unclear, but could undermine some of
the important conservation components of MSA.
Section 10 attempts to address concerns with red snapper
management in the Gulf of Mexico by requiring a real-time reporting and data
collection program for the charter and recreational fishing sectors in this
fishery. Additionally, states boundaries would be extended for the purpose of
red snapper management. We believe these actions would be insufficient at truly
addressing the problems associated with red snapper management, and instead we
support the language in H.R. 3099, the Gulf of Mexico Red Snapper Conservation
Act of 2013. H.R. 3099 establishes a coordinated, state-based red snapper
management approach under the Gulf States Marines Fisheries Commission with
minimal oversight from the federal government. The partnership would be similar
to how striped bass are managed on the East Coast through the Atlantic States
Marine Fisheries Commission.
Several
sections include provisions to require the integration of additional economic
considerations in fishery management decisions. If these provisions are
interpreted to require greater consideration of the importance of recreational
fishing to the economy, then these changes could be beneficial. However, the
interpretations of similar considerations in past versions of MSA have heavily
favored preserving commercial fisheries at the expense of fisheries
conservation and the recreational fishing community.
Omissions:
Several key priorities of the recreational fishing
community are not addressed. These include:
Establishing a national saltwater recreational fishing
policy that identifies goals and
strategies to promote recreational fishing at the local, state and national
levels. Recreational fishing is currently addressed in an inconsistent fashion
by NMFS, due largely to the lack of attention given in MSA. The MSA Discussion
Draft does little to address this overarching concern. We believe the social,
economic and conservation benefits of recreational fishing to the nation would
be greatly improved by the establishment of a comprehensive, national policy to
define and coordinate efforts throughout the federal government, focusing
primarily on NMFS, to advance saltwater recreational fishing.
Adopting a revised approach to saltwater recreational
fisheries management. Currently,
catch limits for recreational and commercial fishing are set at or near maximum
sustainable yield. While this may be an ideal management strategy for
commercial fishing where harvesting the maximum biomass is desired, it is not
an effective management tool for saltwater recreational fishing because anglers
are more focused on abundance and size structure of the fisheries and ample
opportunities to get out on the water. MSA should specifically direct NMFS and
the regional councils to consider alternative strategies to commercial
management for appropriate recreationally-valuable fisheries.
Allocating marine fisheries for the greatest benefit
to the nation. For many mixed-sector
fisheries, allocations of harvestable quota for each sector are based on
decisions in fisheries management plans written decades ago. MSA should require
NMFS, in conjunction with the National Academy of Sciences, to develop
guidelines and criteria that the regional fishery management councils must
consider for allocation of all mixed sector fisheries. To help provide
necessary information for managers to consider, NMFS must enhance its existing
economic program to include bio-economic modeling for mixed sector fisheries.
MSA should also require that the regional fishery management councils develop
procedures for allocation reviews and adjustments based on those guidelines to
occur at regular intervals.
Codifying a process for cooperative management, where fisheries are managed jointly between NMFS and
individual states or interstate fisheries management commissions. Cooperative
management is currently an option for fisheries management; however, the
concept is not fully utilized because of lack of guidance on options and
processes to consider for when this is an appropriate management approach. The
regional councils should therefore be required to develop a process to
determine on a stock-by-stock basis which management entities are most
appropriate and capable of successfully managing the stock.
Managing for the forage base. Currently, very few forage fish are considered in
fishery management plans, meaning that potential impacts on these critical
components of the ecosystem are not considered or controlled. NMFS and the
regional councils should be required to identify the most significant forage
fish for every fish stock currently being managed and create a finding of
whether the identified forage fish should be managed.
The nation’s 11 million saltwater recreational anglers
are a powerful constituency that wants to actively support and enable passage
of a bipartisan MSA reauthorization bill that conserves fishery resources,
provides consistency in regulations, and produces the full range of saltwater
recreational fishing’s economic, social and conservation benefits for the
nation. While we cannot support the MSA Discussion Draft in its current form,
we look forward to working with the Chairman, other members of the Committee
and their colleagues in the Senate to incorporate the recreational fishing and
boating community’s priorities for MSA reauthorization as this process moves
forward.
First Year of Atlantic Menhaden Amendment 2 Implementation
Yields Positive Results
PRESS CONTACT, TINA BERGER,
703.842.0740
2014 Atlantic Menhaden Quotas
|
||
State
|
2014
Quota (MT)
|
2014 Quota (LBS)
|
ME
|
66.58
|
146,787
|
NH
|
0.05
|
112
|
MA
|
1417.94
|
3,126,024
|
RI
|
30.29
|
66,779
|
CT
|
29.50
|
65,034
|
NY
|
93.76
|
206,695
|
NJ
|
18924.42
|
41,721,164
|
DE
|
22.33
|
49,230
|
MD
|
2320.98
|
5,116,874
|
PRFC
|
1049.69
|
2,314,174
|
VA
|
144272.84
|
318,066,790
|
NC
|
833.23
|
1,836,948
|
SC
|
-
|
-
|
GA
|
-
|
-
|
FL
|
30.39
|
66,995
|
TOTAL
|
169092.00
|
372,783,605
|
Alexandria, VA –
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Menhaden Management
Board accepted the 2014 Fishery Management Plan Review detailing the results of
the 2013 fishing year and implementation of Amendment 2 to the Interstate
Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden.
Total 2013 harvest excluding bycatch was 166,077 metric tons (mt), 2.8%
below the coastwide total allowable catch (TAC) of 170,800 mt established
through Amendment 2. In 2013, the
reduction fishery harvested 131,034 mt while the bait fishery harvested
approximately 35,043 mt. A total of
1,942 metric tons were harvested under the 6,000 pound bycatch allowance with
approximately 91% of bycatch coming from pound nets. Bycatch accounted for 1.2%
of the total coastwide harvest, but does not count towards the TAC. Amendment 2 does not provide for the rollover
of unused quota from one year to the next because the stock is currently
experiencing overfishing.
“Through the
cooperative efforts of the Atlantic states in implementing Amendment 2, we have
taken measurable steps towards ensuring the long-term sustainability of the
Atlantic menhaden resource for both its ecosystem services and the fisheries
that depend on it,” stated Commission Chair Louis Daniel of North Carolina
Division of Marine Fisheries.
Amendment 2
implementation has also improved reporting as well as expanded biological
monitoring for the bait fishery. The
accompanying table details state quotas for the 2014 fishing year after setting
aside 1% for episodic events. Any overages
in the 2013 quotas because of late reports will come out of the 2014 quotas.
Progress on the upcoming benchmark stock assessment continues with an
assessment workshop scheduled for June 2 -5, 2014 at the NOAA Beaufort Lab and
the peer review scheduled for December 2014. It is anticipated that the Board
will consider the results of the peer review at the Commission’s Winter Meeting
in February 2015. For more information,
please contact, Mike Waine, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at
mwaine@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.
Sportsperson of the year
By Paul Turi
Just a reminder, next month at our June General
Membership Meeting we will be voting on our Sportsperson of the Year.
If you wish to nominate someone, please submit a bio
of at least 250 words. Don’t worry
about typing and spelling, etc. When we
have elected someone, if I need more or less words to make the bio fit in our
brochure, I will work with the nominating club to accomplish this.
The dinner again this year will be held at the Crystal
Pt. Yacht Club in Pt. Pleasant on Sunday, November 9th, 2014. Ticket prices are the same as last year, $75
per head or $600 for a table of 10.
If
you have any questions, please contact me at the JCAA office or by email at pturi6@comcast.net
PRESS RELEASE By James Lovgren
Shame on Rutgers
university for allowing
themselves to be used in the proposed
climate change study
using seismic testing purportedly to track
changes in sea level over the last
60 million years. Rutgers
has joined up with
Columbia university’s Lamont-Doherty
Earth Observatory, the National
Science Foundation, and the University
of Texas to assess deep sea sediments from today to 60
million years ago to better understand climate change and
historical changes in sea level. This
will purportedly allow us to better
prepare for drastic changes that
some scientists predict
will happen because of global
warming. I think Hurricane
Sandy has done a
pretty good job of that already.
Less than two years ago
the fishing industry and
environmentalists united in a
successful effort to stop a proposed oil industry study that would take
place along the whole
US Atlantic coast and
last for a period of 8 years using
seismic testing to locate
oil and gas reserves hidden
deep beneath the ocean floor.
That testing would have
allowed the “level A taking”
of an estimated 138,612 marine mammals,
[that means serious bodily harm or death] including numerous
takes of some critically
endangered species such as Northern Right Whales. The National
Marine Fishery Service
was fine with that since
they are
owned lock, stock , and barrel
by their masters in the
Commerce department, who are
nothing more than pawns
for the oil industry
who are really running the show behind
a curtain of lies
and lobbyists. The total hypocrisy of the proposal was
exposed by the simple fact that
NMFS was enforcing
an almost total
ban on marine
mammal takes on the commercial
fishing industry, shutting down whole
fisheries if they killed a
couple dolphins or
turtles, and causing millions
of dollars in lost income, while they would
allow more marine
mammal deaths in a year
through seismic testing then would
be caused by the fishing industry
in decades. This whole
scenario was played out in public through a
complicated regulatory system set up to allow
public input into
proposed private uses of
our natural resources.
Public hearings were
held in a number of
locations along the eastern seaboard and the
over whelming sentiment was
don’t NUKE THE WHALES!
So
here we are less than two
years later and the oil industry has figured out that if they
can disguise their
seismic testing for oil as
some other scientific research that
can benefit humanity then
because this is scientific
research and not private/
industrial, they can do it without
the public’s knowledge or input.
There are no
public hearings, and
no notice for the public to comment
on this proposal. Pretty sneaky, but
par for the course for big
oil as we have seen
from the persistence of
Liberty Natural gas in
still pursuing the Port Ambrose LNG
pipeline despite repeated
denials. Funders of this
study, [ cost about
365,000 dollars] include the US
BOEM [Bureau of Ocean Energy Management], The Gas technology Institute, and the American Chemical Society Petroleum Research
Fund, and includes researchers from the University of
Texas, which lists
energy geosciences as one of its
primary research themes. As
soon as I saw the inclusion
of the University of Texas in this
proposal I smelled something
fishy.
Thanks to
a very strong
public awareness of our
ocean environment in New
Jersey we have been able
to stave off oil industry attempts
to drill off of our coast.
South of Cape
May though, the door is opening.
Big Oil has been
gaining in their attempts
to allow oil
exploration through
misinformation, coercion, and
legal bribery [Oil Royalties
to cash starved
state governments]. If we do
not want to see a
BP type catastrophe on the New
Jersey and New York
shore then we cannot allow this
bogus “scientific” study to take
place. The proposal itself states that
the information gathered may be
useful to the oil and gas industry, which if it
confirms large deposits
of gas or
oil will then put on the full court press to drill. For those of
you buying into the “Drill Baby
Drill” chorus then recognize that there is
an estimated 60 day supply
of oil off of the
US Atlantic coast. If
we stopped exporting the massive
amounts of refined petroleum that we are now
exporting, and kept them here
for the benefit of US citizens then
our oil reserves would
last for way
more than presently
predicted, and we
wouldn’t need to drill on the east coast. The
cost of a
BP type oil spill on the east
coast is not worth
the possible economic
benefits to a
few oil oligarchs.
So why shame on
Rutgers University? Because they are
allowing themselves to be used by
big oil for the sake of a few dollars in grant money. An unfortunate reality of
being a university professor is that if you do not bring into the university Grant
money from outside sources then you will find yourself looking
for another job. It
is not how
good a teacher you are, it
is how
much money can you
raise, and that in itself
is a shame. The fact
that Rutgers has very close ties
with New Jersey’s
commercial and recreational
fishing industries and
has for years worked
closely with them on
scientific studies to increase our
knowledge of said fisheries is
quite disturbing. This study
will take place over a
month long period in very productive fishing grounds in the middle of
the summer. The economic impact
of these tests could be huge, yet are
dismissed by the proposers
as minimal. The environmental
damage caused is also minimized because it seems that nobody will fund a study
in this country about the
effects of seismic testing on marine life. Yet
coincidentally marine mammal
strandings seem to
be a common occurrence
when seismic or sonar
testing is used. Seismic
testing is akin to lighting
a stick of dynamite off
underwater every 5 to 10 seconds,
the sound in the near
vincinity reaches 230 decibels and is
fatal to anything within a few meters. Fish and marine
mammals even miles
away are effected to some degree. It is
a proven fact that seismic testing can
kill marine mammals, and
certainly severely injure
them, and this study
recognizes that 26 different marine mammals will be
effected to some degree by this
testing, including at least
6 endangered species of
mammals. This is not to mention the endangered Ridley’s sea turtle, Leatherback, and loggerhead all of which are common in the
area, and also endangered. Lets blow
them all up, then we won’t have to worry about
protecting them anymore.
What
about the fisheries in the NY Bight that
Rutgers has cooperatively
worked with industry to our common benefit? This
seismic testing starts
at the Barnegate Ridge area in waters about
60 feet deep , a historically important fishing ground for centuries, from there it runs southeast
in a 20 mile wide strip out
off the continental shelf over a
1,000 feet deep. The fisheries that will be
impacted by this
study include Loligo Squid,
inshore, and Illex squid on the offshore end,
excellent Scallop grounds occur
through 120 to 240 feet depths, along
with Quahog clams. Tilefish
live in adobe type
burrows in the 350 to
700 feet depths, while Lobsters and
red crabs are
important fisheries on the deep
edge of the continental shelf. Summer
and Winter Flounder
are present on the inshore ends of the study, and
many other commercially and recreationally important demersal fish
are present in the summer, including
Bluefish, Weakfish, Bonito, Spanish Mackerel, A few different species of
Tuna, and many different
types of sharks. Many of these fish will
swim away as fast as they can from the testing area, they
are not stupid, when a bomb goes
off everybody runs, fish do the same. When the bombs continue
for a period of weeks the fish
will totally leave or be killed.
Either way, the fishing industry will suffer from no fish to catch, and
the scientists will say it
wasn’t them, prove it. If
Rutgers wants to be involved in
seismic testing then they should
grow a pair and do research that will document what really
happens to marine life when seismic
testing takes place.
Good luck finding funding
for that.
A
recent study in Spain regarding
seismic testing found that it had
serious to lethal effects on
squid, New Jersey’s squid
industry is always
among the largest
on the East Coast. June
and July are some of the best months for the
offshore Illex fishery,
while the loligo fishery is at
full speed inshore throughout the summer.
Seismic testing off
Australia a few years ago was blamed for
totally destroying a rich
scallop bed, and Clams
have suffered documented
negative effects from
seismic testing. Tilefish
will not swim away from this testing
they will seek sanctuary in their burrows
and probably die. The
coast off of Jersey
will be barren for the summer
season and Rutgers will pocket
a few hundred thousand in blood
money. Is it worth the risk? Will they reimburse the fishing industry for
the damage they cause?. Do they
think that our industry
will ever cooperate in any more joint projects with them again? Rutgers
can stop this
sham, the only reason they are needed is
because the oil industry needs them
involved so they can check
our offshore area
for reserves. No Rutgers,
No study.
If
you think it’s wrong that Rutgers can blow up
whales, Dolphins, and
destroy fisheries for a few
grant dollars in the name of bogus research then
write Rutgers President and
explain your disgust to him. Also call your
Congressman and Senators
and tell them to close this
scientific loophole that
allows big oil to get away
with this testing without any public hearings or input. Its
sad to think that Rutgers
has went from being
one of our countries
oldest universities to being
involved in one of mankinds oldest professions.
ASMFC American Eel Board Approves Draft
Addendum IV for Public Comment
By Capt.
Paul Eidman,
Forage Fish Committee
Chairman
ASMFC American Eel Board Approves
Draft Addendum IV for Public Comment
May 14, 2014 -- The following was
released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:
Alexandria, Va.
-- The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s American Eel Management
Board approved Draft Addendum IV to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for
American Eel for public comment. Draft Addendum IV proposes a suite of options
to address the commercial glass, yellow, and silver eel fisheries along the
Atlantic coast. Management options under consideration include glass and yellow
eel quotas, a catch cap for the yellow eel fishery, a moratorium on the glass
eel fishery, and a seasonal closure and license cap for the silver eel fishery
in the Delaware River (NY). The Draft Addendum also includes glass eel harvest
allowances for aquaculture purposes and a conservation-based allocation program
in which the states may earn a glass eel quota via stock enhancement programs
that increase glass eel passage. The Draft Addendum intends to build upon the
management measures established under Addendum III in order to reduce overall
mortality and increase conservation of American eel stocks
The Board’s
actions respond to the findings of the 2012 benchmark stock assessment
indicating the American eel population in U.S. waters is depleted. The stock
has declined in recent decades and the prevalence of significant downward
trends in multiple surveys across the coast is cause for concern. Causes of
decline are likely due to a combination of factors including historical
overfishing, habitat loss, food web alterations, predation, turbine mortality,
environmental changes, toxins and contaminants, and disease.
Commercial
regulations vary by state. Glass eel fisheries currently occur in Maine and
South Carolina. Significant yellow eel fisheries occur in New Jersey, Delaware,
Maryland, the Potomac River, Virginia, and North Carolina. Although commercial
fishery landings and effort in recent times have declined in most regions,
current levels of fishing effort may still be too high given the depleted
nature of the stock. The recreational fishery is managed under a 25
recreational fish per day creel limit (with an exception for party/charter
boats) and 9 inch minimum size.
As
part of the Board’s deliberations, it received a report on ongoing law
enforcement activities to address American eel poaching. The Board commended
the states and federal government in devoting significant resources to curtail
the illegal harvest of glass eels. The implementation of Maine’s swipe card
system, which allows for real time quota monitoring and harvester verification,
has also been effective in inhibiting illegal harvest.
It is anticipated that the majority of states will be
conducting public hearings on the Draft Addendum throughout the summer. A
subsequent press release will announce the Draft Addendum’s availability as
well as the details of the scheduled hearings. For more information, please
contact Kate Taylor, Senior FMP Coordinator, atktaylor@asmfc.org or
703.842.0740.
Membership Report
By John Toth
Invoices for
2014 club membership dues have been sent out.
Please make every effort to send in your club dues in a timely
manner. Also, please take the time to
completely fill out the Dues and Sponsorship form and the Club Survey form that
we need to update our mailing list. Club
dues are coming in and that makes my job a lot easier!
Thank you for sending in your 2014 dues -
Hudson River Fishermen's Association, NJ Beach Buggy Association and the Spring
Lake Live Liners. A special Welcome Back to the Spring Lake Live Liners to the JCAA
since this club was instrumental in starting up the JCAA during its early
beginnings!
Also, any clubs,
companies or individuals who have ads in our JCAA newsletter, please send in
your payments to our address: JCAA, 1201
Route 37 East, Suite 9, Toms River, NJ 08753.
If there are
problems with the JCAA sending newsletters to the wrong addresses or to the
wrong club members, please let me know so that corrections can be made. I can be reached at (732) 656-0139 or at tothjohn@verizon.net.
As always, Thank
You for your continued support of the JCAA!
Shark River Bunker Die Off
The Clean up continues
By Capt. Paul Eidman,
This past Monday we had a massive fish kill occur
locally. NJDEP helicopters, local media and news crews descended upon the shorelines
of Belmar, NJ to get a shot of all the dead bunker (Atlantic Menhaden)
Normally, the bunkers don’t go this far into the river, which is actually a
large shallow bay. Local fishermen connected this incident to the arrival of
enormous schools of bluefish from 8-16 pounds showing up along the coastline
and scaring the valuable baitfish into the inlet and not letting them out. The
tide dropped overnight and the fish basically choked themselves out due to a
condition called Hypoxia (lack of oxygen), or simply put, too many fish, not
enough water. Important to note that our area has experienced a lot of rainfall
this spring that has been washing all of the lawn fertilizers into the marine
environment and this appears to have added to the situation and may have
accelerated the die off.
Normally, this is a natural occurrence that happens
from time to time with bunker and many other smaller schooling filter feeders,
like anchovy and herring across the country but when water temps are much
higher and dissolved oxygen levels are super low.
Although a few other species have been found, its
important to note that the local fluke (Summer flounder) population that is
also on the bottom appears to be unaffected at this time and this is a good
thing because the season opens on May 23rd.
The waters are still cold and this has been a blessing
up until now, as all the fish went to the bottom. Now, a week later the fish
have started to float up to the surface and clog the marinas in the area. No
doubt that many of these fish will float out with the tides and land on area
beaches. If you need chum or crab bait, this is a perfect opportunity to stock
up and freeze some.
The township released this statement:
“FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
TOWNSHIP TACKLES MASSIVE FISH KILL CLEAN
UP IN SHARK RIVER
As a result of a fish kill in the Shark River on
Monday, Neptune Township, along with Belmar and Neptune City, has experienced
tens of thousands of dead fish washing up along our shoreline each day,
impacting the residents who reside along the Shark River.
Over the past 72 hours, Neptune Township DPW personnel
have collected nearly 3.5 tons of the dead fish, disposing of them at the
Monmouth County Reclamation Center. The clean-up continues today and will
likely for several days to come.
Today,
Thursday, May 15, 2014 the Township has supplemented our DPW staff with inmates
from the Monmouth County Detention Facility assigned by Sheriff Shaun Golden.
The clean-up is a daunting task for the three affected
communities. Neptune has reached out to the NJ Department of Environmental
Protection for assistance in the form of manpower, equipment and funds to help
cover the cost of this clean-up, however; no assistance is forthcoming at this
time.
Our
Department of Public Works will be out throughout the weekend, from 8 AM until
2 PM continuing the clean-up. Those wishing to volunteer their time to assist
in the clean-up may report to the Neptune Township Municipal Marina at 149
South Riverside Drive between 8:00 AM and 10:00 AM on either day to register.
Each volunteer will be provided with gloves and trash receptacles. Volunteers
are urged to bring rakes and shovels.
As the dead fish continue to float up on the
shorelines our residents may think that nothing is being done, but rest assured
our personnel have worked very hard over the last four days and we are making
every effort to clean up the affected areas.”
New Jersey Outdoor Alliance Report
By
John Toth
On behalf of the JCAA, I attended the April 28th
meeting of the New Jersey Outdoor Alliance (NJOA), and the following agenda
items were discussed:
Beach Replenishment and the notching of the jetties
from Elberon to Loch Arbor dominated most of this meeting's agenda. JCAA President Paul Haertel at the NJOA's
March meeting wanted the NJOA to oppose beach replenishment and the notching of
the jetties, but the NJOA felt that it did not have enough information about
these issues so that it could effectively explain them to our legislators. It is one thing to say that you oppose
something, but you have to have a good understanding of it or otherwise your
credibility with legislators can be jeopardized. Accordingly, the NJOA invited Tom Dillngham,
Executive Director of the American Littoral Society, to this April meeting
since he has also been involved in these issues, and he also has an extensive
backgound of the environmental/ecosystem impacts resulting from them. Both Tim and Paul Haertel have had
discussions with the Army Corps of Engineers over the replenishment and
notching issues. Some of the key
comments on these issues follow:
Sand Mining - taking sand from various locations by the Army
Corps of Engineers (ACOE) for beach replenishment and not checking the possible
environmental damage it may be causing is an issue of concern (Tim Dillingham)
Notching is not a proven method to better distribute sand on
the beaches - (Tim Dillingham)
Notching will create dangerous riptides and endanger lives -
(Mary McElroy - Jersey Coast Shark Anglers)
Notching not some permanent solution - when the storms come in
- the sand goes out (Paul Harris - NJBBA)
Dumping sand
by the beaches disrupts and destroys
marine life like crabs, sand fleas, and good fishing areas (Paul Haertel)
Beach
Replenishment is a "colossal
waste of money" since dumping sand on the beaches just gets washed
away. A lobbyist in Washington gets the
contracts to do it so much he is called "the sand man" - Paul Harris.
Public money
is spent to replenish sand on the
beaches, but anglers do not have easy access to the beaches and face
restrictions like little or no parking - Paul Harris
Vote on this
issue - Paul Haertel made the
motion(and seconded by Arnie Ulrich from the Hudson River Association) that the
NJOA should oppose the Army Corps of Engineers plans for beach replenishment
and the notching of the jetties from Elberon to Loch Harbor. Motion was passed unanimously.
Seismic
Blasting Issue - All members of NJOA
against it since it will disrupt marine life.
NJ
Federation of Sportmens Club will
hold their annual convention at the Tropicana during June 6th - 8th. Many events planned and discount rates
available for attendees,
Pequest
Hatchery - More trout killed (44,000)
due to a fungus-type disease. These fish
were killed so that they would not be stocked in streams and possibly transmit
this disease to healthy fish stocks already there.
Youth Education Report
By Greg
Kucharewski
NATIONAL FISHING & BOATING WEEK
NF&BW Free
Fishing Days in New Jersey are Saturday & Sunday, June 14 & 15,
2014. Residents and non-residents may
fish the public waters of New Jersey without a license or trout Stamp. All other regulations apply. For those anglers
just starting out, the Division of Fish and Wildlife offers many programs and
classes to advance from beginner to expert.
The Pequest State Trout Hatchery in Oxford, Warren County offers free
fishing programs. Pequest offers a
Natural Resource Education Center with a variety of exhibits and displays on
wildlife, a butterfly garden, picnic areas and hiking trails. There is also a handicapped-accessible fishing
site along the Pequest River. Last year, the JCAA Youth Education
Committee coordinated fishing and aquatic education programs for the week-long
celebration of National Fishing Week.
This year we will be working with disadvantaged students in Monmouth County. Member clubs that wish to conduct a National
Fishing Week program can phone 732-785-9278 and we will guide your organization
through the process. Phone if you have
questions and please record your event.
Let the JCAA Youth Education Committee know how many National Fishing
Week participants supported your program.
FLY TIER
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Volunteer fly tiers are needed to
support a HOFNOD fly tying program
at Chews Landing. The date is Thursday,
June 19, 2014 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm. We will need about five volunteers to help 15
– 20 youngsters tie flies. Volunteers
will assist youngsters with adding natural and synthetic materials on a hook.
If you would like to help with our youth education
efforts and offer some of your time to teach children the joy of fishing,
please phone 732-785-9278 or e-mail Gkucharews@jcaa.org
2014 JCAA YOUTH EDUCATION AWARD
The JCAA Youth Education Committee is accepting
nominations for the 2014 Youth Education Award.
It takes the support of many volunteers to bring successes to the
fishing community but sometimes individuals and sport-fishing organizations go
above and beyond to make the future of fishing better for our youngsters. Criteria: Promoting “Hooked On Fishing Not On
Drugs (HOFNOD),” Certified HOFNOD instructors, number of fishing or aquatic
education events, JCAA lending library usage, and creativity for promoting
youth fishing events. Submit your
nominations in writing at the JCAA May meeting or email the JCAA Youth
Education Committee, gkucharews@jcaa.org
NJ HOFNOD CERTIFIED INSTRUCTOR
The Newark Bait and Fly Casting Club’s
annual Kids Fishing Derby at Echo Lake Park in Mountainside, NJ is off to a
great start. NB&FCC runs the derby
for three weeks starting from April 12 and going through May 3, 2014. NB&FCC members worked the registration table and handed
out gift bags until 2:00 P.M. Prizes for
the derby will be awarded at the Newark Bait and Fly Casting Club's meeting on
June 3, 2014 at 8:00 P.M.
BEGINNER SURF
FISHING CLINICS
Get
ready to learn about all the tricks and tips about how to surf fish at the
Jersey shore. Surf fishing clinics will be offered at Island Beach State Park July 4, 11, 18, 25 and August 1, 15, 22, 29. Now is the perfect time to register for a
fun-filled day of learning at Island Beach State Park. Pre-registration is
required and a small fee to cover bait and terminal tackle for the surf fishing
clinics.
Veteran
anglers will teach many of the techniques needed to catch striped bass, fluke,
bluefish and other fish that swim close to the shore. The clinic includes the following: knot
tying, rods and reels, rig making, bait, species identification, fish cleaning,
surf casting and reading the beach. Surf
fishing rods and reels will also be provided or attendees can bring their own
equipment.
To
learn more about how to register for the fishing clinics at Island Beach State
Park, please call the Park Office at 732-793-0506.
YOUTH ACTIVITIES
JUNIOR MATES TRAINING PROGRAM
The Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association will have their
organizational meeting for their Junior Mate Training Program at 7 p.m.,
Thursday, June 26, 2014 at the New Jersey Maritime Museum, Dock Road West Ave.,
Beach Haven, NJ. The BHCFA Junior Mate
Program is co-sponsored by Berkley Fishing and offers more opportunity for
junior mates to become better anglers.
Youngsters must register for the Junior Mate program and applicants must
have parental signatures and permission forms completed. For more information about the Junior Mate
program please phone: Capt. John at 609-290-3349 or visit www.BHCFA.com
UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO HOFNOD VISIT
The
Jersey Coast Anglers Association’s Youth Education Chairman is invited to visit
the University of Toledo from June 23-27, 2014 and assist with their National
Youth Sports Program NYSP, Youth Fishing Program. NYSP is a program that helps children build
the skills and the confidence they need to tackle future challenges. The University of Toledo's National Youth
Sports Program provides summer recreational, sports and educational enrichment
programming for approximately 200 youths aged 10 to 16. Our JCAA Youth Education Chairman will
provide guidance about the Future Fisherman Foundation’s Hooked On Fishing Not
On Drugs program and demonstrate a variety of angling techniques. Marine aquatic education will be discussed
for children visiting coastal states during the remainder of their summer
vacation.
BAY FISHING TOURNAMENT
The
Fish Hawks Saltwater Angler’s Club will kick off their 1st Annual
Bay Fishing Tournament on August 1, 2014. It will end on August 31, 2014. The tournament will have two divisions,
adults and children (up to & including 17 years of age.) Entrance fee is very reasonable $15.00 for
adults and $10.00 for youngsters. All
proceeds go to the Fish Hawks Youth Education & Training programs.
I
suggest you get some fishing practice in before the 1st Annual Bay
Fishing Tournament and learn as much as you can about Kingfish and
Blowfish. The tournament is geared
towards family fun fishing in the bay.
Results will be posted weekly on the Fish Hawks Web Site:
www.fishhawksnj.com.
CAPE MAY YOUTH FISHING CAMP
The JCAA Youth Education Committee
will assist Dr. Eleanor Bochenek, Director, Fisheries
Cooperative Center, Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers
University at New Jersey Audubon, Nature Center of Cape May with their summer
fishing camp August 18-22, 2014.
NJBBA ANNUAL YOUTH SURF
FISHING TOURNAMENT
Don’t
miss it. The next NJBBA 21st Annual Surf
Youth Fishing Tournament will be held on September 6, 2014. NJBBA members do a great job of making
children and their families have a fun day fishing the surf at Island Beach
State Park. There is always lots of
prizes, goodie bags, learning stations, and plenty of how to information about
surf fishing. For Information about the
event contact Chairman: Tom Coopey
908-415-3805 tomnjen126@msn.com
KID’S CAST A LINE OF CARING FOR VETERANS
Children
attending the Monmouth County Armed Forces Day Open House on Saturday, May 17th
at 3000 Kozloski Rd. were part of a program called "Cast a Line for
Veterans" at the Jersey Coast Anglers Association and Vietnam Veterans of
America Chapter 12 outdoor learning booth.
Youngsters took turns casting and reeled in a plastic fish target to win
small patriotic prizes. Greg Kucharewski
and Don Davison, Member of Chapter 12 and Jersey Coast Anglers Association's
Youth Education Chair had plenty of information for veterans about local
fishing clubs, NJ DEP/Parks, Veteran Outreach/Services and upcoming events to
connect veterans with the outdoors. 1st. Vice President Jerry
Natale, stopped by our booth to bring flyers for the New Jersey Outdoor
Alliance and the New Jersey State Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs.
JCAA
Presents its 20th Annual
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